


A Childhood Cut Short

by LinkCat



Series: Survivors Of The Adult Apocalypse [1]
Category: Girl Who Owned a City - O. T. Nelson, Trolls (2016)
Genre: Apocalypse, Cannibalism, Childhood Trauma, Children, F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-28
Updated: 2019-09-10
Packaged: 2020-09-28 20:39:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 24
Words: 28,422
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20432105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinkCat/pseuds/LinkCat
Summary: A mysterious illness has killed everyone who is old enough to hit puberty. The children of Troll Village must learn to cope in a world without any adults.





	1. No Adult Survivors

**Author's Note:**

> This is part 1 of Survivors Of The Adult Apocalypse. This is based off a book I read as a teenager; “The Girl Who Owned a City” by O.T. Nelson. Sorry for any mistakes I make. I hope you enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An illness is killing everyone over the age of twelve in Troll Village, and the survivors are just children.

King Peppy knew something was wrong, when several adults became ill and began to die. It started with his wife, and then his administers. His scouts, doctors, and even the teenagers were unable to fight this awful disease. When he too had fallen ill, King Peppy knew that there would be no adult survivors. As he got worse, he called Princess Poppy to his bed.

Princess Poppy was the only living child that King Peppy had. She was nine years old. She walked over to her father’s bedside and frowned. “Dad? You’re so sick.” She looked very worried.

“Poppy, my daughter, I’m dying. I want you to take care of the colony. I have books in the library that will help guide you. I’ve taught Branch everything I could in a short amount of time. He already knows a lot and I know he will help you get through this difficult time. Trust your instincts and follow your heart. I know you’ll do great. You’re queen now, my little princess. Go forth and take care of your people.” He closed his eyes and sighed heavily. He was exhausted and wasn’t going to live much longer.

“No daddy, please don’t die.” Queen Poppy teared up and held his hand. “I need you. I’m still a child. Please don’t go.” She crawled into bed with him and cried onto his chest. She could feel that he had a fever, and his breath rattled like a rattle snake tail. Tears ran down Poppy’s cheeks. She had heard that same rattle, right before her mother died. She clung to her father and didn’t let go. They snuggled like that well into the night. She ended up dozing off. When she woke up early the next morning, she realized her father’s body had gone still. She cried hard as she wrapped her father’s body in his bed sheets. She carried him with her hair and headed for the graveyard. There was a mass grave that had already been dug up. Inside of it laid hundreds of rotting corpses. Nothing touched them. Their bodies smelled so rotten, and the disease so grim, that no other living creature dared consume them. She gently sat her father down in the grave and backed up. She turned and ran towards Branch’s bunker. There weren’t many living adults left. She had checked the day before and found that those who were still alive were also sick. She was scared and needed her friends. Once at the bunker, she knocked on the door.

Branch heard the knock. The twelve-year-old trolling was reading a book when he heard the knock. He walked over to the door and cracked open the peep hole. He frowned, seeing that it was Poppy. He had never seen her gray before. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his gut that he knew what just happened. Most trollings were now gray. Most of them had lost their parents by now. He opened the door and pulled her inside. He held her to him and frowned when she began to sob. “I’m here for you Princess…”

“He died. He put me in charge, but I can’t do it. I’m not ready.” Queen Poppy looked up at him with wide, worried pink eyes. She had never had such a huge responsibility put on her. She feared the entire colony would collapse, and they were all going to die. The youngster was normally confident and optimistic, but right now she felt very small and insignificant.

“I’ll help you Poppy. Let’s start by going around and checking on everyone.” Branch turned to his study and cleared his throat. “Sky! Let’s go check on the colony. King Peppy passed away. We need to check on the younger children…”

Sky was Branch’s identical twin brother. He was five minutes younger and just as clever as his brother. He put the book he was reading down and walked over to the entrance. He pulled Poppy into a hug and held her. “I’m so sorry Poppy.”

“Checking on the colony sounds like a good idea. I’m worried about the babies. What are we going to do Branch? If all the adults die, the babies are all going to starve to death!” Tears streamed down Poppy’s cheeks. She was still young, but she was intelligent. She knew the dangers that she would foresee in the up coming days, and it petrified her.

“The hard reality is, most of the newborns and infants are going to die Poppy. I can try making supplement formula, but it’s only a temporary solution. More then likely, the youngest survivors of this epidemic will be at least six months old. I’m very sorry.” Branch was a realist and didn’t want to give Poppy false hope. If he did find any infants, he hoped he could give them comfort before they died. It was the least he could do before they passed away. He led her outside of the bunker and headed towards the first flower pod. It was home of Yeller and Tiny. He knew they had an infant daughter. Tiny was dying the last time he checked, and Yeller had passed a few weeks earlier. He wanted to make sure their daughter, Smidge, was OK. She was only four months old. He went into their home and frowned when he heard the tiny cries of a frustrated infant. He walked over to Smidge’s crib and looked down at her. Her diaper was soiled, and her bottom was raw from sitting in it for hours. He gently picked the tiny infant up and walked over to the changing table. He cleaned her up and put corn powder on her rear, since it was red and raw. He cleaned her body up and swaddled her. He had a feeling she was going to die of starvation, but he was going to try to keep her alive. He went to check on Tiny and frowned when he saw that Tiny was on the floor. He didn’t have to check the dwarf sized troll to know he had died. His ears drooped as he backed away. He would deal with Tiny’s body after everyone else was checked on. He went to the fridge and sighed in relief when he found a bottle of milk. He sniffed it and found that it hadn’t spoiled yet. He warmed it up for Smidge and offered it to her. He smiled softly when she took to it and suckled hungrily. “I have a book I’ll read about formula. She’s young enough, I don’t think she’ll make it, but for Tiny and Yeller I’ll try. Her fathers tried so hard to stay alive for her. I’ve got to try to keep her alive.”

Sky watched him work and checked the freezer. “Tiny was busy. He has this freezer packed with milk. It’s not enough to get her to six months old, but it’ll help.” He had a feeling that others would fight for the milk. “We shouldn’t tell anyone about it. This is for Smidge’s stomach only.”

“I agree. Her father’s milk belongs in her stomach.” Poppy looked worried. She hoped they wouldn’t find anymore orphaned babies, and if they did, she hoped they would be as lucky as Smidge was.

“The good news is, she’s old enough to eat soft food. She still needs milk, but this will help a lot. Let’s keep checking homes.” Branch finished feeding Smidge, and then put the bottle into his hair. He tucked her in beside the bottle, and then headed out the door. There were a lot of home pods to check. This task would easily take all day, or even all week.

For the next twelve hours, Branch, Sky, and Poppy checked each home. Some homes were already empty. Some had a home full of orphaned children. They found food, clothes, supplies, and medicine that would help, but there were no more surviving adults. Branch sent all of the survivors to his bunker, so that he could keep track of them and help them through this difficult time. He was now the oldest living troll in Troll Village. He promised Poppy he would help her, although he didn’t really want all that responsibility.

In total, there were three babies under the age of one, five children under the age two, ten children under the age of three, eleven children under the age of four, six children under the age of five, seven children under the age of six, twelve children under the age of seven, fifteen children under the age of eight, seven children under the age of nine, twelve children under the age of ten, fourteen children under the age of eleven, ten children under the age of twelve, and two under the age of thirteen. 

Branch counted them all and frowned. He had just over one hundred children to tend to. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it. He was glad that he had his brother, and that over half the children were old enough to read. He planned to have Sky teach them how to survive, while he worked on gathering food. He was grateful he knew how to cook and so did eleven-year-old Biggie. They were going to need all the help they could get. He watched the children as they all looked up to him. They were all scared and now looked up to Branch. His heart raced as he took in the thought of all that responsibility. He hoped he wouldn’t let them down.


	2. A Need To Stay Strong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch and Sky realize quickly that taking care of over one hundred children is way harder than they could have ever imagined.

Branch’s main concern for all the children under his care was survival. It wasn’t going to be easy, he knew that, but nothing prepared him for what happened the morning after King Peppy died. One of the three-year olds had taken a bite way larger than he could handle and was choking. Branch knew basic first aid, and knew the Heimlich maneuver, but he was unable to dislodge the chunk of food that had become stuck in the little one’s throat. 

When the toddler went still, Branch held him for some time. He had seen so much death the last month, but nothing could have prepared for the loss of a child so young. He showed no emotions as he carried the limp child over to the mass grave. He gently set him down in the hole and proceeded to cover the grim sight with dirt and rocks. It took several hours to complete the task, but he knew if he didn’t do it, he put himself, and everyone else at risk of catching the disease once they hit puberty themselves. 

Several children came up to him and asked him if they could help, but for this task he refused. He just asked for them to go back to the bunker and stay there. Once he was done covering the mass grave, he walked over to King Peppy’s home, went to the bathroom, and began to take a shower. He kept his clothes on as he washed the filth off his gray skin. Once he was clean, he got out of the shower and began to see what King Peppy had in his flower pod. He found some medicine and food. He took a mental note of what was there and put a bottle of strong pain medicine in his pocket. He planned to lock the pain medicine away. With no doctors around, they were going to need all the medicine he could find and didn’t want it to go to waste.

Branch found a large bag of sugar in the kitchen. He picked it up and headed towards the bunker. Sugar wasn’t easy to produce, so he was going to hide this too. Trolls loved sugar, and this wasn’t going to last long if he didn’t control rations. He hoped to use easier to find foods in place of sugar as much as possible. Honey, molasses, and maple syrup where what he planned to use as an alternative sweetener. Once he got to the bunker, he hurried to where he kept everything in lockdown. He went inside and put the sugar and the pain medicine inside. He closed and locked the door. He headed towards the kitchen. He had a feeling that the trollings were going to want lunch soon. He didn’t want to do it. He was still deeply saddened by the sudden loss of the toddler just hours earlier. He began making lunch. He didn’t even look at Biggie when he came in to help.

“I’ve got bread loafs in the ovens.” Biggie whispered as he walked over to Branch. He had witnessed the toddler struggles and wasn’t sure how to comfort Branch. He stood by him for several minutes, before pulling him into a hug.

Branch turned to him and hugged him back tightly. Biggie was huge compared to him, even though he was three months younger. He looked up at his best friend with a frown. “I’m going to fail them.”

“You’re going to succeed, and this village will thrive. You’ll see.” Biggie reassured him. He was scared too, but had remained optimistic, despite their dire situation. He sat down and put Branch in his lap. He held him like this for a while and cradled his older companion, like he was a child who just scraped his knee.

“You’re going to be twelve in a few days.” Branch whispered. “What would you like for your birthday?”

“Is it really almost my birthday? I’ve lost track of time.” Biggie frowned and looked at the calendar that was on the wall. “I don’t know what I want. I would love to have my parents back, but that’s not viable.”

“I’ll find you something.” Branch closed his eyes and sighed heavily. He was going to figure it out, because he wanted to give Biggie a special gift. So far, he had been his biggest support during this difficult time. After cuddling for about ten minutes, he got up and went back to working on lunch. Once lunch was done, he grabbed a bell and rang it. He watched as the children came rushing in to get food. “Biggie and Sky watch them. I’m going to go forage.” He grabbed a large backpack and a large sack and headed out to door to go get food.

“Don’t forget to get some rest!” Biggie sighed and watched him go. He got to work on getting food for the toddlers and babies. He made sure to cut the food into smaller pieces this time, so that they didn’t choke.

Sky sat down with the youngest member with a bottle of milk. He began feeding her. He was glad that there wasn’t too many babies, because if there were, they would have to deal with more heart break. He was really hoping Smidge would make it. He was becoming attached to her.

Smidge was the youngest member and suckled on the bottle quietly. Her bottom was still red and sore from the diaper rash, but she was feeling a lot better today, thanks to Branch and Sky. She finished the bottle and stretched out. She cooed and suckled on her hand.

“Still hungry? Here, let’s try some apple sauce.” Sky gave her a tiny spoonful. He had been introducing her slowly. He wasn’t sure how much her fathers gave her before they had both passed away.

Smidge was still new to the idea of eating solids. She made faces and sucked on the food instead of chewing. She really wasn’t quite ready for it, but she was hungry. She sputtered on it a little bit and arched her back when she had enough. She began letting out cries as she began soiling herself. Her bottom burned from the rash. She needed changed right away to relieve the pain.

Sky got up and went to tend to her diaper. He cleaned her and put powder on her bottom. Instead of putting a diaper on, he laid her down on a blanket which was laying on the ground, on her belly, so her bottom could have some air. He recalled seeing other parents doing this whenever a baby had a rash. He knew she would likely make the blanket dirty, but it would hopefully give her some relief.

Smidge watched the world go by from her belly. She liked tummy time and calmed right down. The peace didn’t last long though. Another toddler came over and pulled on her long blue green hair. She began letting out loud wails. She was pissed.

Sky heard her wails and ran to check on her. He nudged the toddler off her and told him to go play. He picked her up and held her. “I’m sorry sweetheart. I should have stayed with you.” He groaned when she began to pee on him. “Of course…” He looked frustrated as he headed for the bathroom to prepare a bath for her and him.

The day was like this for all the older trollings too. Everyone older than seven were all taking care of the children younger than themselves, and they had no idea what they were doing. They were not sure what they were going to do, because they didn’t even have time to read books, like their parents recommended. By the end of the day, they were all frustrated, tired, and cranky. Everyone went to bed way earlier then normal, and even the babies seemed too tired to resist the urge to get some sleep. Survival was going to be rough, but they were all determined to try.


	3. A Present For Biggie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch is determined to find a present for Biggie’s birthday.

A couple of days later, Branch went out again to forage. He looked around for what he could. He had plans of fishing, once he returned to the village. Food was still plentiful, and he was grateful he had spent a few years of foraging on his own. He knew all the good place to search for food. He grabbed nuts, mushrooms, fruits, eggs, and even a large chunk of honey. During his search, he ran into a young glitter worm. He looked at the little yellow, pink, and green worm and smiled. “You look lonely. Would you like to go home with me?” He winced and coughed. He had had a bad cough for a week, because of a cold he had had weeks earlier.

“Mew!” The young glitter worm looked up at Branch with wary glittery eyes. He was a wild worm but had been on his own for some time. He was a bit young to be on his own.

“It’ll be fine. I know someone who could use a friend like you. He’ll take great care of you.” Branch picked the young worm up and began making his way home. He looked down at the young worm and smiled when he saw that he was beginning to doze off. “A nap sounds so good. I think I might do that before I make dinner tonight.” He made it the rest of the way home, and then tucked the young worm into his hair. He unlocked the bunker and went inside. He sat the food down in the kitchen, and then went to go lay down for a nap. He crawled into the bed and pulled the worm out of his hair. He snuggled with him and dozed off. He didn’t normally nap in the middle of the day, but he was coming down with a fever. He silently prayed that he wasn’t catching the virus that had killed all the adults and teenagers.

It was close to dinner time when Sky went looking for his twin brother. He found him in bed. He thought this was very unusual. He checked him and frowned when he found the fever. His heart squeezed tight. He had a bad feeling he was going to lose his twin. He tucked the blanket around him and put a cool wet cloth on his forehead. He left to make sure that the dinner got made and served. The children were not going to like going without food.

A few hours later, Branch woke up feeling very cold, but his fever was high. He threw the blanket off, knowing the fever could kill him. He curled up in a ball and shivered as the fever raged in his body. “Go little worm. Go find someone else to cuddle with. I’m going to die.” He frowned when the worm proceeded to only cuddle closer. “Darn it, I don’t want you to catch it. You’re supposed to go to Biggie.”

“Are you OK Branch?” Biggie came in to check on him. He could see that his friend was shivering but was also covered in sweat. He came over to him and checked his forehead. “Oh no…” Tears filled his eyes and ran down his cheeks. “You’ve caught it.” He began to sob. “You can’t get sick. I don’t want you to die.”

“It might not be the same disease Biggie. It’s too early to tell, and he isn’t showing the same symptoms. It could be he caught a bacterial infection while foraging, or he was exposed to a poisonous plant. Come on big brother, it’s time for a bath.” Sky helped Branch to his feet and led him and the young worm to the bathroom. “Wash the sheets Biggie, and then come bathe with us. We’ve got to clean everything he has touched to assure it doesn’t spread, if it’s a poisonous spore.” Once in the bathroom, he took off all his clothes and threw them into the laundry basket to be washed.

“I don’t feel good.” Branch shivered as he walked to the bathroom. He stripped his clothing off and stepped into the tub. He began to run lukewarm water and closed his eyes as the water slowly began to rise. He groaned and cringed as his teeth chattered. He was very sick. He had a bad cause of pneumonia. He needed antibiotics. He cringed as he coughed. He felt a lot of phlegm come up. He checked his hand and found mucus mixed with blood. “I need antibiotics…”

“I’ll go get it as soon as we’re done bathing.” Sky bathed his brother thoroughly, and then went into the bath and washed up as well. He had bathed several times with his brother, so it didn’t bother him at this point to see his brother nude, or to be nude in front of his brother.

Biggie came in and gathered up Branch’s clothes. He sat them in the laundry basket and put his clothes in there. He went to take care of that laundry. He put them in with the sheets, and then came back to the bathroom and waited his turn in the tub.

Once Branch was clean, and he assured that the glitter worm was clean, he got out of the tab and dried off the worm. He sat him down and began drying himself off. Once he was dry, he headed back to bed. He groaned when he saw that it wasn’t made. He sat the worm down in a chair and began making his bed. Once it was made, he plopped right into it. His energy was wiped. He was exhausted and weak.

Sky wasn’t too far behind Branch. He helped him get comfortable and put a pillow under his head. “I’ll go check the medical pod for medicine. Get some rest. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He hurried out the door to go find some medicine for his poor brother.

Biggie took a quick, but cleansing bath. Once he was toweled dry, and dressed in clean clothes, he went to check on Branch. He saw him curled up on his side in bed. He noticed the little glitter worm. He picked him up and sat down in the bed next to Branch. “Did you find this while out foraging?”

“Yeah, he looked lonely and scared. Happy Birthday Biggie. He’s for you.” Branch cracked a smile. “Sorry it’s a day early.”

“It’s OK. I don’t mind it being a little early. Thank you so much.” Biggie gave him a gentle hug and laid down beside him. He looked at his new pet and smiled. “I’m going to call him Mr. Dinkles.”

“Mew…” Mr. Dinkles looked between the two trollings. He wasn’t sure what to make of all this, but he was just glad they hadn’t eaten him yet.

“It’s a great name.” Branch closed his eyes and groaned as he coughed.

Sky returned with medicine. He helped Branch upright and gave it to him. He made sure he drank a lot of water with it. “Rest! I’ll read up on pneumonia, but you will probably need to be in bed for at least a week. Don’t worry about anything. I’ll take care of the kids.” He helped Branch lay down and smacked his butt. “That’s for waiting too long to take medicine.” He gave him a hug. “This is for not fighting me to take it.”

“I hate medicine…” Branch grumbled crankily and rubbed his bottom. He murmured that he was going to get Sky back one day.

“I’ll help too.” Biggie got up and tucked Mr. Dinkles into his hair. He left Branch to rest. They were going to be busy, but he knew that they would be fine without Branch’s help. Right now, the young survivalist needed to get rest. He hoped he would feel better soon. He was very worried about him.


	4. Snuggles With Branch

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A small group of the trollings decide that Branch needs some snuggles and love.

Later that same night, when everyone began getting ready for bed, some of the trollings noticed that they hadn’t seen Branch since earlier that morning. They approached Sky with wide, worried eyes. They wanted to know if the eldest living colony member was alright.

“Where’s eldest Branch?” A five-year-old lavender trolling, by the name of River, asked Sky with a frown. She was worried that Branch would die like her parents had.

“He’s very sick River. He’s in bed and will be resting for a while. Don’t worry though, we caught the illness in time.” Sky hugged her and ran his hand through her white and green two-toned hair.

“Did he get the adult illness?” An eleven-year-old by the name of Goldie frowned and looked towards Branch’s bedroom. The golden trolling looked worried. She didn’t want Branch to die. Branch and Sky had taken everyone in to help them, when they didn’t have to help at all.

“I don’t want him do die!” Guy Diamond burst into tears and began to cry. The ten-year-old was worried that they would all die, like the adults had.

“There’s no need to panic. Come on, I’ll show you to him. He’s going to be OK with rest.” Sky led them towards Branch’s room. He understood why they were all worried. He didn’t blame them for being scared.

The group of trollings followed Sky to Branch’s room. Ten of them climbed onto his bed and snuggled up with him. They wanted to make sure he wasn’t alone while he was feeling so sick.

Basil, a completely blind turquoise trolling, wriggled his way into the bed. The one year old had light blue and light green two-toned hair. He got right next to Branch and cuddled close. “I wuv you…” He looked worried. He didn’t want Branch to die like his mama and daddy died.

Branch felt warm bodies snuggling into him. He tried to nudge them off. “I’m too hot…” He complained tiredly. He groaned when he felt a cold cloth being placed on his forehead. He glared at Sky. He didn’t want the other kids in his room. Especially a baby. He tried to push Basil off him, but the little one wasn’t letting him go.

“You’ve got some company Branch. They were getting upset.” Sky turned his light out and left him to cuddle with his newly adoptive family. He knew they would take care of him, and he wasn’t going to get lonely this way.

“Rest Branch. We all need you safe.” Goldie ran the cool cloth along his body. She could see that he was flushed and felt the warmth of his skin. She was a daughter to one of the deceased medical trolls, so she had had some training before her father died. She was going to make sure he felt better. She had already planned on reading medical books and becoming the village’s young doctor.

River felt his skin. “He’s got a fever.” She looked at Goldie and frowned. “Is he gonna die?” She teared up and sniffled. She didn’t want Branch to die.

“I’m not dying.” Branch winced and began to cough. He was too weak to resist all the snuggles, but he was concerned that the other kids were going to catch the pneumonia. He didn’t want them to get sick too. Their population was already dangerously low. They couldn’t afford too many deaths.

“You better not!” Guy Diamond crossed his arms and glared at Branch. He frowned and moved closer. “Please…” He sniffled and hugged into him.

Basil was snuggled up to him and wasn’t letting go. He had a determined look on his face. He wasn’t sure how he was going to do it, but he wasn’t going to let Branch die.

“Don’t worry, he should be just fine with medicine and time.” Goldie finished cooling Branch down, and then laid down beside him. She spooned him and closed her eyes. She was going to make sure he rested. She had a worried expression on her face. She knew pneumonia was usually not fatal, but it didn’t mean she wasn’t worried. She recalled her mother having it, and she was sick for over a month as she recovered from the nasty infection. Branch was going to be down for a long time. “I’m going to help take care of the kids Branch. I don’t want you to worry about anything while you rest and recover.”

“I’ll help too.” Guy Diamond nodded and rubbed Basil’s back.

“I’ll help.” River smiled at them and snuggled close. She was still learning, but she was going to try hard to be a good helper.

“Help…” Basil teared up and began to cry. He was scared. He remembered his parents being this hot.

“Thank you, all of you.” Branch smiled softly and held Basil close. He knew they were just trying to make him feel better. He appreciated it a lot. He slowly dozed off, feeling content under a trolling pile. He had a family, which was more then he had not that long ago. Before this, it was just him and Sky for over four years. He missed the warmth of a family.


	5. Hungry Siblings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few trollings wonder into Troll Village, looking for a safe place to call home.

A few days later, three young trollings wondered into Troll Village. Jaxon was a twelve-year-old white trolling, with white hair, a red patch over his eyes, red hands, and red eyes. He had a pair of white fairy like wings. Darling was an eleven-year-old black trolling, with midnight blue hair, dark blue on her belly, dark blue halfway up her arms and legs, a dark blue facemask, dark blue eyes, and midnight blue wings. Breeze was a nine-year-old white trolling with a midnight blue hair, a dark blue ring around her right eye, dark blue hands, dark blue eyes, and midnight blue wings. They had been on their own for three weeks, and although they had managed to find some food, all three of them were thin. Jaxon was the thinnest. He had assured that his sisters ate first when they found food. He often went without to make sure they didn’t go hungry. He was extremely protective of his little sisters. 

As the three trollings explored the empty flower pods, Jaxon stopped them when he found a flower pod with a box full of crackers. He pulled a stack out and let his sisters eat. He searched for more food. He found dried fruit and nuts. There was enough for all three, so he began to munch on some fruit and nuts. He was starving.

Darling ate some crackers, and then walked over to Jaxon and traded some fruit and nuts for some crackers. She sighed in relief when her belly started to feel full. “We should stay here for a little while Jaxon. We need this food. You’re getting too thin.”

Breeze ate her fill, and then walked over to a bed. She crawled into it and groaned. She was tired, and it was getting dark. She dozed off, feeling comfortable for the first time in weeks.

“I agree. There’s probably more food in the other flower pods. Let’s get some sleep. I’ll search for more food and clean water after we get some sleep.” Jaxon headed for the room that Breeze went into. He crawled into the bed with her and snuggled up with her. He hardly settled into the bed, before dozing off. He was exhausted.

Darling followed her older brother into the bed. She cuddled into him and quickly dozed off. She was exhausted too.

The next morning, after eating breakfast, Jaxon ventured outside. He headed towards another flower pod. He didn’t get far, before he heard a door open. He wasn’t expecting there to be any living adults, but he knew there was a chance that there were living children here. He became tense as he blended into his surroundings.

Sky had come out of the bunker. He headed towards the medical pod to get cough syrup for Branch. Branch was feeling a little bit better, but the mucus in his chest was breaking up and making him cough more. His hadn’t slept well the night before. Sky was hoping some cough syrup would help him get some sleep. He froze when he saw that something was different near the medical pod. There was a fuzzy mushroom, where they wasn’t one the day before. He walked over to it and frowned. “Who are you and what are you doing in our colony? Have you stolen?! We need whatever you’ve stolen!” He flushed and crossed his arms.

Jaxon cringed resided his hair. He swallowed hard. “My name is Jaxon. I’ll replace the food we have eaten and be on our way. Deep apologies.” He flushed and headed towards the flower pod that his sisters were in. They were obviously not welcome there. He was worried that they wouldn’t find enough food to make up for what they had consumed the night before and during the morning. He had been having trouble finding food, because he didn’t know where to look or what wild foods were edible. He didn’t want his sisters to become sick.

Sky frowned when Jaxon resided his hair. He could see that the young troll was around the same age he was, but he was dangerously thin. “Hold on! Don’t go! I’m sorry. You scared me. You needed that food. You’re so thin. Don’t worry about it.”

“Of course, I’m thin. My sisters need to survive.” Jaxon didn’t make eye contact. “We’ll leave you alone. I just need to retrieve my little sisters.” He opened the door to the flower pod and cleared his throat. “Come on Darling, come on Breeze. We’ve got to go. This colony isn’t abandoned.”

“Do we have to?” Darling came out and looked at her brother. “There’s food here.” She gasped when she saw Sky. She wasn’t expecting to see him. “Who’s this?!” She hid behind Jaxon. She was wary. She had to be, after a bully chased them out of their village.

Breeze pulled out her knife, that she had hidden in a satchel on her hip and charged out. She sneered and pointed the knife towards Sky. “Get the hell away from my siblings, or I’m going to cut you!” She was going to protect the food they found. She had a determined look on her face.

Sky saw Darling and watched her. He thought she was beautiful. He let out a nervous giggle and put his hands up when Breeze came out. “Sorry for making you three feel like you have to leave. Peace? We’ve got food in my bunker. You’re more then welcome to come down and have a nice hot meal?”

Jaxon put his hand on Breeze’s shoulder. He was proud of her for being protective. “Put it away sis. I misunderstood him. He thought we stole. An understandable assumption.” He looked at Sky. “Promise me that my sisters stay safe, and I’ll accept the offer.”

Darling slowly relaxed. She could see that Sky was friendly. She wasn’t ready to completely let her guard down though. She wanted her brother and sister safe.

Breeze put her knife away and watched Sky with a look of determination. She put two of her fingers towards her eyes and then pointed to him, to indicate that she was watching him.

“They’ll be safe.” Sky smiled softly. “Hold on, I’ve got to get medicine for my brother, and then I’ll show you to our bunker.” He headed into the medical pod. He grabbed a bottle of cough medicine, and then came back out. He began leading them towards the bunker.

“He’s sick? I can heal him, unless he has the adult disease. That was incurable…” Jaxon followed Sky but kept his sisters close.

Darling walked with Jaxon. She glanced around as they followed.

Breeze walked beside Darling and kept her eyes on Sky. She wasn’t sure if she could trust him yet.

“Yeah, he’s got pneumonia. He’s very sick.” Sky glanced at Jaxon, and then opened the bunker. “He’s less trusting then I am, but you can try to heal him. He might not let you touch him.” He led them into the bunker and then closed and locked the door. He headed for Branch’s room. He went inside and stood by Branch’s bed. “We have company. One of them is a healer.”

“It’s a trick.” Branch rasped. He became tense when he heard footsteps in the room. He turned over and sneered when he saw Jaxon, Darling, and Breeze. “Get out of my room!” He raised his voice slightly. He winced and began to cough hard.

Jaxon’s cheeks flushed when Branch yelled at him. He was about to change his mind, until he heard that cough. He shook his head and walked over to him. “You’re going to be sick for weeks if I don’t help you. Hold still.”

Sky stepped out of the way. “Let him help Branch.”

“No!” Branch moved away from Jaxon. He gasped when Jaxon pinned him down. He struggled a little bit under Jaxon’s weight, but was too weak to push him off. He began to curse profusely. He was livid. “Get him the fuck off me! He’s going to kill me! God damn it Sky!” He’s eyes widened when he felt the pain leave his chest and belly. He slowly calmed down and relaxed. “Oh…” He flushed and looked away. “Thanks. I’m starting to feel better.”

“Feisty for someone who is so sick. You’re going to still need to cough out that mucus. I recommend getting some sleep too. You’re exhausted.” Jaxon helped him sit up and began patting his back. “I might have to heal you again once you clear your lungs. Pneumonia can be ravaging.

Branch grabbed a hanky and coughed up mucus. He already felt way better than he had in weeks. He coughed up what he could, and then settled back into bed. He looked at Jaxon and sighed. “Sorry for snapping at you. I don’t trust strangers.” He noticed that Jaxon was thin. “You need to eat.”

“With good reason.” Sky sighed and sat by his brother. They had had a rocky past. “Thank you for healing him. We’re going to need you here. Please stay.”

“As long as my sisters are safe, I’ll stay.” Jaxon smiled softly. He felt exhausted from healing Branch. He felt weak but tried to act like he was fine. “Where’s that hot meal? I need to eat something and so do my sisters…”

“Follow me.” Sky headed for the kitchen. There were trollings to introduce. It was going to be a busy day.

Jaxon, Darling, and Breeze followed Sky. All three looked forward to a hot meal.

Branch watched them go and then closed his eyes. He began to drift off, thinking about how lucky they were for finding a healer. Troll Village used to have them some time ago, before they were wiped out. Jaxon was going to be a blessing, so long as he stayed. He had a feeling they were all going to be OK now.


	6. Making Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaxon, Darling, and Breeze settle into their new home and make new friends.

It took a few days for Jaxon, Darling, and Breeze to settle in. Most of what they did in those few days was eat and sleep. Their bodies needed to catch up after not eating or sleeping well for weeks. Once their energies were restored, they began exploring their new home. Jaxon was pleased to find a library. He settled down with a medicinal book and began reading up on medications. He had been preparing for becoming a doctor, before his parents got sick. Breeze had followed him in there, and also grabbed a book. It was about war. She grinned as she flipped through the pages. She was already getting ideas for the future.

Darling wasn’t as interested in books as her older brother or little sister. She wanted to get to know the other children. She walked around and smiled when she noticed that there were way more young children then she thought. She found Sky in the dining area. She walked over to him and grinned when she saw that he had a baby in his arms. “She’s adorable. She’s the smallest baby I’ve ever seen.”

Sky smiled when Darling walked over. He was feeding Smidge. “She’s just over four months old. She’s the youngest survivor. We’re hoping she survives. Luckily her father assured she had milk after he died. She wouldn’t have survived otherwise.”

Smidge shot a glare at Darling when she mentioned that she was small. She spit the bottle out of her mouth and fussed when she got full. Her stomach was bloated from getting use to solids. She was also colicky and uncomfortable.

“Her belly looks a little swollen. I used to babysit. Here, I’ll help her.” Darling picked Smidge up and put her over her shoulder. She patted her back until Smidge burped, and then sat down and laid Smidge on her belly, over her legs. She messaged her back gently.

“She gets fussy if Branch or I don’t hold her. She might get mad.” Sky watched her with interest. She seemed to know what she was doing. He hoped she could give him some pointers. Smidge hadn’t had the easiest week as everyone got use to taking care of her.

Smidge let out cries after she was burped, until she felt the message. She grunted and cooed. The message felt good. She slowly relaxed in Darling’s lap. She began passing gas, which gave her a lot of relief.

“Poor thing is so gassy. I bet that feels so much better.” Darling rubbed Smidge’s body all over. The little one appeared to be stressed out, but she knew light message could help her.

“She likes that. Can you show me?” Sky scooted closer and watched her. He was glad that Smidge had calmed down.

“Of course. You have to be gentle. Use your fingers and just gently rub your fingers in circular motions. Like this.” Darling showed him how she did it on his arm.

“That feels good.” Sky nodded and reached over to Smidge. He began messaging her gently.

Smidge slowly relaxed in Darling’s lap. She dozed off, feeling way better.

“There we go.” Darling gently picked Smidge up and set her in a blanket. He swaddled her and then cradled her close. “I’m going to make sure you grow up nice and strong, little one.”

“Thank you, Darling.” Sky smiled and watched her. He wondered what else she could teach him. He was willing to learn more.

Back in the library, Goldie found Jaxon with a medical book. She walked over to him and sat down. “What are you reading about?”

“Surgery. I figured it would be good for me to know how to do it, just in case there is a need to preform it. Healing doesn’t fix everything.” Jaxon scooted over and moved the book so she could read it too, if she wished. He had learned the last couple of days, that she was a medical troll in training.

“Yeah, there will definitely be need for surgery, among other needs. You never know what might happen. It’s better to be safe.” Goldie read the book with him and smiled. She was glad that the colony finally had a healer. They were going to need him. She put her hand on his hand and snuggled.

Creek and Stream wondered into the library too. The identical twin nine-year olds spotted Breeze. They walked over to her with their own books. They sat down and began to read next to her.

Breeze glanced up at the twins and looked between them. “You two look the same, just like Branch and Sky.”

“Yeah, we’re identical twins too.” Creek smiled at her. He began to ready a spiritual book.

Stream read through a different spiritual book. Both were spiritual trolls and were able to read auras. He trusted the three siblings and was glad that they joined the colony.

Jaxon glanced over to Breeze and smiled. Breeze appeared to be relaxing, which made him happy. He was starting to think that they made a wise choice staying here. They were safe, full, and happy. He wouldn’t have it any other way.


	7. Lost Souls

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More young trollings wonder into Troll Village, seeking refuge.

A few months later, winter was starting to settle in. There was snow on the ground as three young trollings made their way towards Troll Village. The oldest among them was Garnet at the age of twelve. He was a week shy of his thirteenth birthday and had been very lucky not to have hit puberty yet, or he would have died too. He was a deep reddish-purple glitter trolling, with dark red hair. He had purple eyes. He was carrying a three-year-old dwarf trolling by the name of Pearl. She was salmon pink, with red hair and pink and purple heterochromia eyes. She was missing her right arm. Beside him was a yellow nine-year-old trolling with bright orange hair and yellow eyes, by the name of Bask. Garnet and Bask were cousins, but little Pearl was saved by Garnet, when he had spotted her being attacked by a wingdingle. She had lost her arm during the attack. Garnet was a spiritual troll, with the ability to heal. Bask was a healer. Together they had been working hard to keep themselves and young Pearl alive. All three were thin, cold, and desperate for food and shelter. As they approached Troll Village, Garnet noticed that there was smoke, billowing out of the ground in small puffs. He knew someone lived here, but he was worried that they wouldn’t take kindly to strangers. He handed Pearl to Bask and searched for a door. He had to try. If they didn’t find shelter or warm clothes soon, they were going to die. The winter weather was becoming bitter. He found what appeared to be a door. He knocked on it and waited for an answer.

Bask looked nervous. He held Pearl close and rubbed her back. She was listless, and weak. She was hypothermic. He knew if these trollings didn’t accept them, Pearl was going to die.

Pearl groaned and cracked her eyes open. She shivered and glanced at Garnet. She was too weak to move, but the smell of baking bread had her tiny belly rumbling.

Branch walked over to the door and cracked open the peep hole. He saw the three trollings and frowned. “Who are you?” He glanced at Bask and frowned when he saw the toddler. She didn’t look good. He hesitated and then opened the door. He let them in and gently took the toddler. “Explain on the way. She’s very cold.” He rushed towards the fireplace.

“My name is Garnet. I’ve been trying to find a home with my cousin Bask since our parents died. Our village was tiny and there were not many kids. No one followed us when we left. The baby’s name is Pearl. We found her a couple months ago. She was attacked by a wingdingle and lived. She’s hypothermic. Please help us…” Garnet hurried after Branch. He was nude, being a glitter troll, and was also on the verge of hypothermia.

Bask followed Branch and looked around. He was glad to be in a warm home. He was cold too. He only had a shirt and pants on. 

Branch sat by the fire and rubbed Pearl’s back gently. He grabbed a throw blanket and wrapped her up in the blanket. “My name is Branch. My brother Sky and I made this bunker together three years ago after our father was killed.” He looked wary. He absolutely hated strangers, but these kids were in trouble. They needed help. He hoped they didn’t stab their backs.

Pearl shivered in Branch’s arms. She glanced up at him and began to cry. She was wary of strangers too, and Branch had her nervous. When the warmth came back to her hand and feet, and felt like pins and needles, her wails became louder. She was frightened. She had to pee suddenly but was scared to say anything.

“It’s alright Pearl. He’s helping.” Garnet sat beside her and caressed her cheek. “She acts like she might have been mistreated by her parents, but she could also be jumpy because of the wingdingle attack. Poor baby is so scared.”

Bask sat by Branch and made faces at Pearl, to try and get her to settle down.

“It’s OK Pearl. I’m not going to hurt you.” Branch reassured her. He smiled as his friends and brother came in to investigate. “This is Garnet, Bask, and Pearl. They’re going to join us.” He pointed to each one of them as he told them their names.

“They’re nice trolls.” Stream assured as he walked closer. He noticed Pearl was petrified. He knelt down and smiled at her. “It’s OK Pearl. You’re safe.” He kept looking at Garnet. He could tell that there was something extra special about him.

Pearl was really scared now. She pushed on Branch and turned to reach for Garnet. She trembled in fear. “Garnet!” She didn’t want to be held by a stranger.

Garnet took Pearl and held her close. “I’ve got you sweetheart.” He rubbed her back soothingly.

Bask smiled at the new trollings. He had a feeling it was going to take a while to learn everyone’s names, but he could see that everyone appeared to be friendly.

Branch got up and smiled. “I’m going to go reheat some soup and make hot cocoa. I’ll be back with hot food for you three.” He left the three new trollings to go make a late lunch for them.

“My name is Stream. Garnet? Are you a spirit trolling with healing abilities?” Stream watched him and smiled.

“I am. How did you know?” Garnet looked surprised. This was the first time someone had noticed his abilities without being told.

Pearl began to squirm in Garnet’s lap. She looked up at him and frowned. “I need to potty.” She put her hand down and held herself. She sniffled and whimpered when other trollings got too close.

“I’m a spiritual troll.” Stream got up. “I’ll show you to the bathroom.” He headed for the bathroom.

Garnet got up and followed Stream. He hoped she would make it. He had a feeling she waited too long. She had a tight hold of her crouch. “Hold on Pearl. It’ll be alright.”

Pearl squirmed in Garnet’s arms and whimpered. She started to cry as her underwear and pants began to get wet. She couldn’t hold it any longer.

Stream opened the bathroom door for them and frowned when he noticed that her pants were wet. “Oops…” He began running a bath for them.

Garnet pulled her underwear and pants off. He sat her down on the toilet so she could finish. “It’s alright sweetheart. Oh boy, you really did have to go, didn’t you? That’s a lot of pee!” He held her upright, since she was wobbly and weak.

Pearl calmed down when her butt touched the toilet. She peed for a long time for a little bean. She sighed in relief and looked towards the bath. “I like baths.”

Basil came running into the bathroom. He was naked and very excited that the bath was running. Before Stream could stop him, he had managed to crawl in and was splashing in the water. He had just turned two and was fast for a little guy. “Bath!”

“Basil, you’re not subtle.” Stream chuckled. He turned to Garnet. “Do you think she’ll be OK with bathing with him? He’s super friendly and the opposite of shy.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Garnet helped Pearl out of her torn shirt and set her down beside Basil. He stepped in for a moment and cleaned up the pee off his side, and then got out and dried off. He didn’t care much for bathing, but he had to this time.

Pearl watched Basil quietly. She was starting to feel better but was too weak to engage in play. She gasped when Basil splashed her. “How rude!”

Basil scooted closer to Pearl and felt her face. He squealed, noticing she was about the same size as he was. She was a little smaller, despite being a year and a half older. He squealed in delight. “Friend!”

“Be gentle Basil. She’s smaller than you and she’s thin. I’ll be making extra cookies just for her for a while.” Stream watched them to make sure Basil didn’t get too frisky.

Garnet watched them and chuckled. “Looks like you just made a friend Pearl.” He was glad there were kids her age here. She needed friends. He hoped that others here treated her good. He was already attached to her and was protective.

Pearl slowly calmed down and smiled when Basil hugged her. She hugged him back. She didn’t know it yet, but she was officially under the protection of a Basil. She felt a strong connection with him already and hoped he was right about them being friends. He was very nice.


	8. A Scared Teenager

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Garnet’s thirteenth birthday comes.

Garnet, Bask, and Pearl settled down well in their new home. For the next week, all three of them regained their strength. Pearl spent most of her time sleeping. She was always with Garnet, whether he was sleeping or eating. She didn’t want him out of her sight. Garnet spent most of his time sleeping. He had lost a couple of his toes to frostbite but was just glad that Pearl hadn’t lost any. He had tried so hard to keep her hand and feet warm. She didn’t need to lose any more body parts. Bask had also lost a couple of toes. He kept rubbing were his amputation sites were at. It was foreign to not have toes were toes use to be. He had also been doing a lot of sleeping too.

As morning rose on Garnet’s birthday, a feeling of dread filled him. Instead of being excited for becoming a teenager, he was fearful. He found out he was the oldest living trolling in his new village. A feat he wasn’t sure he wanted to have. He was scared that he would die from the adult disease. He got up and headed for the living space. It was still early, so no one was awake yet. He put some wood in the fireplace, and then sat down by the fireplace. He watched the flames grow as the wood caught fire. He closed his eyes and sighed softly, as the flames warmed him up.

Pearl woke up when Garnet moved. She slipped out of bed and ran to the bathroom. Once she was done in there, she walked towards the fireplace. She was glad to see her buddy there. She walked over to him and snuggled up to him. She was bonded to Garnet and treated him like a big brother. She could tell something was bothering him but wasn’t sure how to ask what was wrong.

“You didn’t have to wake up with me Pearl. I couldn’t sleep.” Garnet had had a nightmare, that he had died from the adult disease. He didn’t want to die. She needed him. Bask was a great trolling, but he didn’t think Bask could handle the responsibility of raising Pearl. He was still a little kid himself.

“I want to stay with you.” Pearl looked up at him. She snuggled close and smiled when he played with her long red hair.

“You’re so sweet Pearl.” Garnet began braiding her hair. He teared up, recalling that he did this with his newborn sister, right before his mother died. The tiny bean had died not long after their mother died. She was unable to survive without her milk. “You’re so much like Ruby…” He sniffled and rubbed his nose.

“Who’s Ruby?” Sky came walking in. Smidge had awakened, and he had just tended to her wet diaper. He had her snuggled to his chest. He was wondering why Garnet and Pearl were up so early.

Smidge looked over at Garnet. She was finally weaned and had been managing without milk. She glared towards Garnet. She wasn’t used to him yet and was wary of strangers.

Garnet rubbed his face of tears. “I’m sorry. Did I wake you?” He avoided eye contact. He was embarrassed that he was crying in front of someone he hardly knew. “Ruby was my baby sister. She was too young to survive without mom.”

Pearl looked over at Smidge. She was curious but had yet to explore the tiny bean that was a Smidge. She didn’t want to leave Garnet’s side.

“I’m so sorry. I can’t imagine.” Sky sat down beside him and laid Smidge over his chest. He rubbed her back and chuckled when he saw the glaring. “You’re always so cranky Smidge.”

Garnet turned to look at Sky. He saw the seven-month-old and smiled softly. “She’s cute. How did she survive?”

“Her father was one of the last trolls to die in our village. He made sure to freeze a bunch of milk. It lasted until she was five months old. She’s managed just fine since on soft foods and mush.” Sky patted her back. “She’s closely bonded to Branch and I. She prefers me for some reason. She tolerates Branch.”

“She’s very lucky and tough.” Garnet reached over and caressed Smidge’s cheek. “You’re a tough little bean, aren’t you?”

Smidge pushed his hand aside with her hair and screamed angrily.

“How rude!” Pearl put her hand on her hip. “Be nice to Garnet! He’s a good big brother!” She glared at Smidge. She didn’t care that she was still a baby. She wanted her to be nice.

Sky chuckled and tickled Smidge’s neck. “Be nice, silly girl. He’s not going to hurt you.”

“That’s alright. She can be cautious. You never know in our current world.” Garnet sighed and hugged Pearl. “This one is special to me. I’m not sure what I’m going to do if I get the adult disease. She needs me.”

Smidge huffed and continued glaring. She wasn’t amused by how close Garnet was to Sky.

Pearl glared right back at her. She pressed her cheek to Garnet’s chest and listened to his heartbeat.

“You shouldn’t die. The disease has been gone long enough, and Branch and I have deep cleaned everything. The chances that it will resurface is nearly zero. If it makes you feel better, I’ll take care of her if anything happens to you.” Sky smiled softly. He understood the fear. He was nervous too. He knew he was going to hit puberty soon, and the thought of dying scared him. “I take it you’re going to turn thirteen soon?”

“I turned thirteen today. At five thirty-two this morning. Mom said I kept her up all night, and then gave her a really hard time when I came out. I was her first child. She didn’t have anymore until Ruby. I always sort of thought she didn’t want to go through it again. Ruby was a surprise.” Garnet sighed and looked down at Pearl.

“Well, happy birthday. You know what time you were born?” Sky inquired. He looked impressed. He planned on making a cake to have after dinner. He had assured that everyone’s birthdays had been celebrated. A little normalcy was keeping them all sane.

“Yeah, I’m really good with dates, times, and special occasions. Not being around a clock or calendar really bothered me when I was traveling. I had a watch, but it broke when I saved Pearl.” Garnet smiled softly. His mother called him a genius, but he didn’t feel like one. Especially lately, after losing his parents, Ruby, and nearly freezing to death.

“That’s neat.” Sky smiled at him and looked at the fire. He had a feeling that they were going to need that while adjusting to life without their parents. He was glad Garnet, Bask, and Pearl found them. He already hated to think what could have happened. All three were a nice addition to their home.


	9. Snow Wars

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trollings break out of routine to try something new.

A month later, Sky had everyone gather in the main room. He had requested they wear sweaters, warm pants, and socks. He had been outside and noticed the snow was perfect for snowball fights. He grabbed Basil and tried to put socks on his feet. He didn’t want the toddler to end up with frostbite.

“No!” Basil squirmed and fussed. As soon as the socks were on him, he pulled them off and threw them at Sky. He hated socks. He couldn’t stand anything touching his feet. He relied on his feet to feel where he was going.

“Your feet are going to get cold then!” Sky scolded him and glared at the stubborn child. “You can’t go out long if you don’t have something on your feet!”

“No!” Basil growled and began whacking Sky with his hair. His cheeks were flushed from anger. 

Sky shook his head and let the boy go, so he could avoid getting sore. He planned to make sure the stubborn kid came back in after fifteen minutes. He didn’t want him losing toes. “Alright everyone, we are being split up into two teams. Glitter vs non-glitter. When a snowball hits you, your out. Let’s go out and have some fun!” Sky opened the front door and laughed as the kids ran off and scattered. He bolted for a tree to hide. He formed a snowball and looked for a glitter troll. He was determined to win.

Basil took one step outside and shivered when his foot hit the snow. He made a face and huffed. “Yucky…” He startled when a snowball hit him. He growled and backed up. “Bad!” He grabbed the door and slammed it shut. He stripped the clothes he was wearing off and ran towards the fireplace. He hated wearing clothes, and he really hated socks. He threw wood shavings into the fire and grumbled crankily.

“Didn’t want to go either? I don’t blame you.” Garnet was sitting by the fire with Pearl. He sat her down and smiled when she walked over and sat by Basil. He watched the fire and sighed contently. He had been out in the cold long enough. He was content to just stay nice and warm by the fire.

Bask had stayed in too. He didn’t want to get frostbite again. He was reading next to Garnet.

Smidge was on the floor next to the couch. She stared in the direction that Sky had left. She wasn’t happy that the only older trolls in the room were Garnet and Bask. She looked up at Garnet and screamed angrily, before getting on her hands and knees and crawling quickly away from them. She squealed when she heard Garnet get up. She went as fast as she could. She didn’t want him to pick her up. She wanted Sky.

Garnet chuckled and followed her. He knew better then to try and pick her up, but he had to make sure she didn’t hurt herself. She was at a stage in her life that everything was investigated with the mouth. He didn’t want her to choke.

While Smidge kept Garnet’s hands full, the trollings outside where having a blast. It was an even tie so far. Kids who were no longer in the snow war were making snow angels and snowmen. Branch was out, and was being buried by Jaxon, Biggie, and Poppy. Cooper’s loud laughter filled the air as the eight-year-old giraffe trolling ran around to avoid the snowballs.

Sky was still at it and was being successful so far. He had Creek, Stream, and Fuzzbert at his sides, throwing snowballs along side him. He nailed Guy Diamond and hollered a victory cry. He knew Guy Diamond was going to be a hard one to hit.

Guy Diamond looked disappointed. He dropped his snowball and wondered over to help DJ Suki with a snowman. “I didn’t want to be out.” He complained.

The laughter of all the children didn’t go unnoticed. A twelve-year-old light green glitter trolling, that had two toned pink hair spotted them from the trees. His name was Tourmaline. He had been out searching for food. He had a gang of older trollings living with him. They were barely scraping by. He smirked, knowing that these kids had to have a good food supply. They all looked healthy and well fed. He backed up and left to go tell his fellow members that he had found food and possibly a good supply of other materials.

The kids were only out another hour, before they all started to go inside. They were all wet, cold, and tired, but all of them were a lot more relaxed. Sky had won the snow war and was so proud of himself. He had his chest puffed out. He thought he did a great job. Little did he, they had been spied on by the group of gang members. Their seemingly carefree winter was about to get really rough.


	10. Trusting The Wrong Trollings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch lets a group of trollings into the bunker, and it ends up being a mistake.

A few days later, the leader of the group of gang trollings led his group of trollings towards Branch and Sky’s bunker. The thirteen-year-old was maroon red with black hair. His name was Parch. His scarlet red eyes glanced around, until he stopped at the door and knocked on it. He had talked to his group and told them to lie and deceive. They were going to take full advantage of whatever these trollings gave them, and then leave them high and dry, with little to no food to fend for themselves.

Branch walked over to the door and cracked open the peep hole. He frowned, seeing a group of six trollings, all males and in their pre-teens, standing outside his door. “Who are you?” He hesitated but opened the door. It was cold, and all six of these trollings looked thin.

“I’m Parch. My friend Tourmaline saw your village the other day, playing in the snow. We were hoping you could help us out. We ran out of food.” Parch shivered, to add dramatic affect. 

Branch motioned them in. “We were just settling in for lunch. Come on in and help yourself.” He watched them step into the bunker, and then closed the door and locked it. He led them towards the kitchen. “My name is Branch. I’ll introduce everyone after lunch.”

Creek was in the middle of eating lunch, when he saw the six males come in. He put his spoon down and hurried over to Branch. “I need to talk to you.” He tugged on Branch’s vest.

Parch glanced at Creek. He wondered what was suddenly so urgent. He shrugged it off and went to get food.

The other five trollings helped themselves to food. They were all very hungry.

“Yeah, of course Creek.” Branch stepped aside, wondering if one or two of them might have shadowed auras. Creek looked very nervous.

Creek waited until they were out of ear shot. He had Branch kneel and whispered to him. “All six of those trollings have evil tendencies. They’ve got to go. They’re going to put our entire village in danger. I can sense it.”

Garnet walked over to Tourmaline and grabbed him by the arm. He began dragging him towards the door. “I know you! You’re getting your ass out of this bunker right now, you son of a bitch!”

Bask jumped to his feet and widened his eyes. He ran to grab his knife. He looked scared. Tourmaline lived in their old village, and he was bad news.

Pearl’s eyes went wide when Garnet got up. She hid under the table and pulled Basil down with her. “Garnet said bad words.”

“Uh oh!” Basil put his hand over his mouth. “Busted!”

Creek ran off to go hide. He didn’t want to be involved in this at all. He could sense the overwhelming darkness in the room.

Tourmaline let Garnet push him toward the door, until they were around the corner. He grabbed a knife out of his hair and stabbed Garnet several times. He tried to grab him to drag out of the bunker, but Garnet got away. He grabbed a five-year-old, who had come to help Garnet, and bolted for the front door. He had a huge smirk on his face as he carried the child away. If he couldn’t have a hot meal, he was going to improvise.

Jaxon scooped Garnet up and hurried him to another room for treatment.

The little one screamed as she was carried away. Branch hurried after them, but Tourmaline got away and disappeared from his sight.

The other five took the commotion as a chance to grab what they could. They grabbed large helpings of food and whatever else they felt could help them. They waved their knives around and yelled at everyone to stay back, or more of them would get hurt. All five of them went out of the front door with about two weeks supply of food.

Everything happened so fast, and now Branch was kicking himself for letting those kids in. He closed and locked the door, and then looked around at everyone. He could see blood but wasn’t sure who all got hurt. “Is Garnet the only one that got hurt?!” He was worried about the five-year-old girl. He had a bad feeling something bad would happen to her.

Bask hadn’t come back in time to stab anyone. He went to go make sure Pearl was OK.

“Yeah, I think so.” Sky was surprised and angry. There was a huge mess in the bunker. A pot of soup had spilled on the floor, there was blood all over the floor, and a few of the younger trollings had peed or pooped themselves in fear. He began cleaning up after the mess.

Once Branch was sure everyone else was OK, he went to check on Garnet and Jaxon. He winced, seeing a trail of blood all the way to the bedroom that Jaxon carried Garnet to. He came in and walked over. “Is he alright?”

“Yeah, he’s OK. Lost quite a bit of blood, but he’s healed now.” Jaxon had just finished healing him. “Come on Garnet, let’s get you bathed. You need a bath anyway.” He led him towards the bathroom.

Garnet was weak. He had lost a lot of blood. “I hate baths.” He grumbled crankily. “Don’t let those trollings in again. They’re mean and hateful. They’ll kill too. I’ve seen them do it.” He shuddered at the memory.

“I won’t let them in again. I’m going to be more cautious now…” Branch sighed and began cleaning up the blood. His already dwindling trust just got slashed again. He was angry.

Jaxon got a bath ready and looked at Garnet. “You’re getting stinky you know. A good shampooing will do you good.” He smirked when Garnet glared at him. “Hey, a little honesty never hurt anyone.”

“Did I really smell that bad?” Garnet glared at Jaxon, and then got into the tub. He sank into the water and groaned when the hot water helped his sore muscles. “Fine, I’ll bathe more often.” He didn’t look amused. He didn’t care for being wet. Especially his hair.

“Yes buddy, you got armpit stink.” Jaxon handed him a cloth and a bar of soap. He helped him clean up. He was just glad Garnet was alright. That could have ended badly. He had heard the little girl scream. He hoped whoever screamed was OK.

Unfortunately, the little one was not OK. She was tortured and killed by the trollings and eaten that night as a meal. It wasn’t exactly what some of them wanted, but it was way better then eating rotting fruits or vegetables. All six of them went to bed full, and feeling satisfied, for now.


	11. A Warning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Parch leaves a warning by the bunker.

The following morning, Parch walked over to Branch’s bunker. He had a sack full of bones. He dumped them by the bunker and put a letter on the door. He pulled out his penis and peed in the snow next to the bunker. He also left a nice smelly poop by were he saw an air shaft. He had a huge smirk on his face as he left the bunker. He wasn’t going to leave these kids alone. They had food and supplies that he wanted. He wasn’t going to stop until he got what he wanted.

Later that morning, Branch was packing up to try and find the five-year-old trolling that had been kidnapped. He was hoping to get out the front door without anyone stopping him. He wanted to leave sooner, but Garnet, Bask, and Poppy had tried to stop him. He snuck towards the front door and opened it. He stepped out and widened his eyes when he nearly stepped on the fresh bones that laid right outside the bunker. He saw the same light-yellow hair around the bones that the trolling had. “Oh no…” He felt his heart break. “Not Flower…” He sank to his knees and began to weep. He couldn’t believe that another child had died under his care. Even though he was no longer the oldest, he felt like a father figure to them all. He felt like he was failing them.

Poppy had followed Branch to the front door. She felt her heart squeeze when she saw the bones. Even though she wasn’t the oldest, she was the one that was in charge. She had let Branch do a lot of the dictating, but she was starting to see it was wearing him out. She had recently turned ten, and knew it was going to be best if she started taking charge of some of the decision making. She wanted to make sure that her strongest colony members didn’t crumble from the stress of taking care of over a hundred children. She stepped outside and pulled him into a hug. “We have to protect the rest of the colony. That means you need to stay safe too. Let’s go get a few others and we will go bury Flower’s bones.”

“I want to do it alone.” Branch sniffled and held the young queen for a few minutes. He didn’t want to let her go. It could have easily been her that had been taken. Poppy had gone to help Garnet too, but it was Flower who ended up getting snatched.

“You’re not going to go alone, and that’s final. I know I’ve put you in charge, but what I say goes. You know this. I’m going to start being the queen my father knew I could be. I appreciate all the help you can give me, but I’m going to take over now. You need rest.” Poppy had him look up, so they were eye to eye. “I mean it. I don’t mind your help, but you’re not risking your life doing it.”

“Says a girl who is almost three years younger than me.” Branch couldn’t help but crack a smile. “Alright, I won’t go alone, but I don’t want too many out here seeing these bones. They’re all going to have nightmares.”

“I agree. I’ll go get Sky, Jaxon, and Goldie.” Poppy felt those three were strong enough to handle the nasty situation, not that any of them were really old enough to handle this. She left the door open as she went back inside. She wanted to hear what was going on outside. She didn’t want anything to happen to Branch. As far as she was concerned, he was regent, and was very important.

Branch watched her go and began looking around. He noticed the pee and pile of poop. He winkled his nose and shook his head. “Nasty bastards.” He spotted a note on the door. He walked over and pulled it off. He began to read it quietly.

“To the bunker dwellers,

You’re going to provide us with food for the remainder of the winter. That can be rations that you leave out of your bunker door, or it can be more delicious trollings such as the delicious treat that we kidnapped last night. Your decision to make. Don’t disappoint us.

Your worst nightmare,

King Parch

PS: I took delight in listening to the kid scream in agony for hours as we tortured her before killing her. I would love to do it again. I would love to listen to Branch scream too. Fucking idiot.”

Branch gagged at the thought of those monsters eating poor little Flower. He hurried to a bush and began to vomit up his breakfast. He couldn’t stomach the idea of a troll eating another troll.

Jaxon heard the puking and hurried over to Branch. He took the note and read it. He shuddered as he finished reading it. “What a charming individual…” He said sarcastically. He pushed the paper into his pocket to burn in the fireplace. He rubbed Branch’s back as he got sick. He had a feeling Branch didn’t handle the letter well. The idea was also hard for him to stomach.

Sky and Goldie were not far behind him. They looked at the bones with wide eyes. They wondered why there wasn’t any raw flesh on the bones. They actually looked like they had been boiled and they had been. The six males had boiled her bones for soup.

After Branch’s stomach settled, all five trollings worked together to get Flower’s remains buried. They all headed home to discuss and decided how they were going to handle the situation that was depicted in the letter. Those bullies/murders needed to die for their actions, but it was clear that they were not going to be an easy group to kill. They had a lot of decisions to make, and over a hundred children to protect, but they were all determined to keep each other alive.


	12. Branch Has No Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch’s trust is shattered, and it’s really starting to show.

After much debate and arguing, the trollings had all decided to give into the demands of the bullies for now. Branch planned to contemplate and plan for the demise of the gang. He was worried that more trollings would be killed. The rations were left outside the bunker once a week and was more than enough to feed the gang of greedy males. No one had been hurt so far, so everyone slowly relaxed. No one ever went out alone though. It was like this for a month, until there was a knock on the door.

A twelve-year-old set of fraternal twin girls named Jade and Sapphire were outside the door. Jade had Sapphire in her arms. Jade had blue, light blue, green, and light green splotches on her glitter skin. Her hair was multiple shades of green and blue. She had light blue and green heterochromia eyes. Sapphire was dark blue, with dark blue hair. She had light blue eyes. Sapphire was conscious but had clearly been injured.

Branch slid open the peep hole and sneered. “Who the fuck are you?!”

“Please…” Jade frowned at his tone. “I need help. My sister fell out of a tree. She’s got a broken arm and can’t feel her legs. Her back hurts too.” She had been searching for help for days. She was scared.

Sapphire glared at Branch. She already hated him. She didn’t like his attitude.

“Hell no, go the fuck away!” Branch closed the peep hole and stormed away. He had decided after the six-mean trolling, which he had found out were named Parch, Tourmaline, Acorn, Indigo, Red, and Peace, that he could no longer trust anyone who came to his door. He would never again risk his adoptive family.

Jade drooped her ears and went to set Sapphire down by a rock. She sat down beside her and cried into her hands. She was frustrated, tired, and cold. They both had warm clothes on, despite being glitter trollings, but it was still cold outside. They had been camping out and traveling for months, and now they had to find a home, or Sapphire was eventually going to die. There was no way Jade was going to protect, feed, and care for Sapphire in her current state for much longer. She was exhausted. To make matters worse, she was starting to go through puberty, and was having menstrual cramps. She didn’t know what was going on with her body. She hadn’t started her period yet, but it was going to happen soon.

“What an ass.” Sapphire leaned back on the rock and closed her eyes. “Just leave me Jade. You can’t carry me around forever.” She frowned when Jade shook her head. She didn’t want to die, but she didn’t want to be a burden either. She was angry that the one chance they had just slammed his peephole on them. She glared towards the bunker. She was livid.

Inside the bunker, Sky met Branch by the door. “Who was that?” He looked concerned. He thought by Branch’s facial expression that it might have been one of the gang members.

“Two females. One is claiming the other is hurt. I told them to go away.” Branch walked past his brother and headed for the kitchen. “Don’t you dare let them in!” He looked back at him and shot him a look. He knew Sky was a softer touch then he was.

Sky frowned and watched him leave. He walked over to the door and peeked outside. He saw Jade crying into her hands, and Sapphire glaring in his direction. He felt his heart squeeze when he saw that Sapphire’s arm was badly broken. He opened the door and walked towards them. “What happened?”

Jade scrambled to her feet and got between Sky and Sapphire. Her heart was pounding hard in her chest. She was scared that this jerk was going to hurt or even kill them. “Don’t hurt her! She’s hurt enough!”

“Go the fuck away!” Sapphire spat. She tried to stand, but her legs weren’t working. She picked up a rock and threw it at Sky. She missed because it was her non-dominant arm that she threw with.

Sky watched the attempt to threw and felt his heart break even more. It was obvious these girls were scared out of their minds and were trying to protect each other. They were well fed though, which told him that they were smart. They had made it through winter without starving. “Easy does it, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m sorry my brother turned you away. You’re clearly hurt. He’s nervous. We had a group of trollings come in and cause problems a month ago. They killed one of the little kids. He’s trust has been shattered.”

“You’re not the same troll?! Your brother is an identical twin?” Jade inquired with a frown. She was very nervous. She had no weapons, so she couldn’t protect her sister.

“He didn’t have to cuss.” Sapphire grumbled and glared at Sky as he got closer. She gasped when he picked him up. “Geez, you’re strong.” She swallowed hard as she was carried towards the bunker door. She was suddenly scared and began to tremble. She hoped they weren’t going to get hurt.

Sky carried her towards the kitchen. He looked around for Jaxon or Garnet. He wanted this poor girl healed right away.

Jade followed Sky quickly and looked around nervously.

Branch hurried over and grabbed Sapphire from Sky. “You don’t listen Sky! Damn you! You’re putting our colony at risk!” He went to set Sapphire down on her feet and frowned when her legs gave out. He picked her back up and frowned. “Your legs don’t work?!” He frowned, because she was sobbing in pain.

Sapphire let out a scream of pain when her legs gave out and she fell. Her broken back was painful, and her arm got jarred.

“Damn it Branch!” Sky growled and whacked him upside his head. “Stop being a jerk!”

Jade’s eyes were as wide as saucers. “Don’t put her down again! I told you she’s hurt!”

Jaxon and Garnet came scrambling in. They had heard the screams of pain. They led Branch towards a room that they had set up as a medical room.

An overwhelming sense of guilt filled Branch as he carried Sapphire towards the medical room. He gasped, feeling warm urine hitting him and getting him wet from Sapphire. He flushed and shot a glare at Sapphire. “Did you just pee on me?!” He sat her down in a bed and looked down at his wet clothes.

“I can’t hold it you fucking moron!” Sapphire screamed at him. She closed her eyes as tears ran down her cheeks. She was in gobs amount of pain. She was glad she peed on Branch. She felt he deserved it, even though she had no control of it.

“Let’s get out of the way Branch.” Sky led his brother out of there so he could change and take a bath.

Jaxon waited until Branch left and turned to the new trollings. “He’s not as mean as he appears. He’s just a protective grump.”

Garnet checked Sapphire over and frowned when he noticed that her back was badly broken. He shifted the bones manually and cringed when Sapphire screamed in agony. “I’m sorry.” He made sure those bones were straight, and then set her arm. He winced again when she let out sobs. He began to heal her, once her bones were set. “Help me heal her Jaxon.” He didn’t want her to be in pain any longer. They didn’t have any sedatives in the bunker, or he would have given it to her. He felt awful for causing her so much pain. He planned to research on the matter.

Jade was shaking and watched them quietly. She was at a loss for words. “We will leave as soon as she feels better. Sorry to cause problems.”

Sapphire put her hand over her mouth. She was in so much pain that she was nauseous. She turned her head and began to puke onto the ground. It wasn’t much. She hadn’t been eating a whole lot since getting hurt. She had lost her appetite due to the pain she was in. She slowly relaxed as the pain eased, and her stomach settled. “I can’t feel my legs still…”

“You appear to be paralyzed. I had an uncle who was in a wheelchair. He had a spinal injury too. I will help make you a wheelchair.” Jaxon helped heal Sapphire. He liked her already. She seemed feisty, despite being clearly disabled.

“You two can’t leave. She won’t survive with her spinal cord injury. Not with it being just you two.” Garnet shook his head. “I’ll talk to Branch.”

“I’m scared.” Jade began to sob. She didn’t trust these boys. She was absolutely petrified.

Sapphire closed her eyes and groaned. It was going to be a long road from here. She had a feeling it was going to be rough, but she was going to make this work. She had to. She promised her father that she would take care of Jade before he died. She was determined to keep her promise.


	13. Feisty Gem

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sapphire proves herself to be fierce despite her condition.

For the first two days since arriving at Branch and Sky’s bunker, Sapphire and Jade mostly slept. Sapphire ended up having to sleep alone in a small bed with plastic under the sheets. She was incontinent, and unable to control her bowels or bladder. She was semi-dependent but had only allowed her sister to help her. She didn’t want anyone else touching her. She was wary of the other trollings, even though Garnet and Jaxon healed her of the pain she was in.

Two days was all Jaxon needed. He fashioned her up a wheelchair while she rested. In the morning of the third day she lived in the bunker, he came into her bedroom and parked the wheelchair next to her bed. “This will help you get around independently Sapphire. You owe me one. Take your time on the payback though. I know you’re still recovering.”

Sapphire smiled when he came in. She had seen wheelchairs before, and even played on one a few times when she visited the medical pod at her old home. She pulled her legs up and positioned them over the side of the bed. She sat up and looked at the chair. She was trying to think of how she would get from the bed to the chair. She whacked Jaxon’s hand away when he went to lift her. “Let me do it.” She pulled the chair closer and went to scoot herself into it. She fell onto the floor and squeaked. She growled when Jaxon picked her up and put her in her chair. “I said let me do it!” She gave him a half-hearted punch in the arm.

“My goodness you’re feisty. I’m just trying to help.” Jaxon smiled at her and let her get comfortable. “Do you know how to control it?”

“I do.” Sapphire positioned herself, so she was comfortable, and then propelled towards the door. She had a huge smirk on her face. It was the first time in a week that she had control of which direction she went. She began exploring the bunker. She flushed in anger when she ran into several staircases and stepdowns. She wasn’t going to be able to get around very much, even with her wheelchair. She looked around for Sky or Branch. She wanted to talk to them about the stair situation. She found Branch. She watched him for a few minutes, to try and figure out if he was Sky or if he was Branch. She already liked Sky, but she hated Branch. To her, Branch was a complete ass.

Jaxon followed her around and smiled at Branch when she approached him. “Good morning Branch.”

“Good morning Jaxon.” Branch turned around and groaned when he saw Sapphire. “Her chair is done already? Great…”

Sapphire whacked him. “That’s for being a butt!” She whacked him again. “That’s for not having your underground home wheelchair assessable!”

Jaxon put his hand over his mouth and tried not to laugh. Sapphire clearly hated Branch’s guts, even though he was kind enough to let her and her sister stay. Not that him and Garnet were going to give him much choice. He wasn’t going to let those girls leave. It would be too dangerous for Sapphire.

Branch yelped when he got whacked in the butt, not once, but twice. He rubbed his buttocks and glared at her. “Well excuse me for not being a morning person, and for not thinking of placing down ramps. We didn’t have a wheelchair bond troll until three days ago.” He glared at her. Creek and Stream had reassured him that Jade and Sapphire were both good spirited. He didn’t believe that Sapphire was good spirited. She was far to feisty and mean.

Sapphire propelled her chair around him and looked him up and down. “You seem strong enough. You can fashion up some ramps in no time. Get to it! I want to be able to access all areas of the bunker. It’s only fair!” She clapped her hands and then motioned for him to get to it.

“You better get on that Branch.” Jaxon laughed loudly. He was amused that she thought she was the boss of him. It wasn’t going to work.

Branch rolled his eyes and went to go finish breakfast. “I don’t have time for this. I got breakfast to finish.” He could smell that the cinnamon rolls were just about done. He didn’t want them to burn.

Sapphire grumbled that it wasn’t fair. She followed him closely and grinned when she ran into him. “Oops…”

Branch turned to her and growled. “Leave me alone!”

“Naw, I like watching you squirm.” Sapphire smirked and stuck out her tongue.

Jaxon chuckled and shook his head. He left them to go help with breakfast, since Sapphire was distracting Branch.

“What’s your problem?!” Branch grumbled and moved away from her. He growled when she got closer. “Stop it!” He blushed when she cornered him. “Biggie! Help me!”

Biggie came in and walked over to Sapphire. He looked between them and smiled. “What’s wrong Branch?” He was glad to see Sapphire in a wheelchair. He knew she had hated being dependent on her sister.

“I’m making him uncomfortable. I bet he’s scared I’ll give him cooties. A little too old to be worried about that, don’t you think Branch?” Sapphire gave him a cheesy grin.

“I don’t trust you.” Branch complained as he moved away from her. He hid behind Biggie and hugged into him. He buried his face into Biggie’s skin. They had officially become boyfriends recently. He loved snuggling with his teddy bear.

“She’s not a bad troll Branch. It’s alright.” Biggie turned to him and hugged him. He knew Branch was having a hard time adjusting to having Jade and Sapphire around. Parch and his gang had really scared him.

Sapphire gasped and put her hands over her mouth. “You are boyfriends, aren’t you?! That’s so cute!” Her attitude changed completely. “Biggie’s sweetness definitely calms your grumpy nature. You two should get married.” She mused.

“Not until we’re older.” Branch grumbled. “I don’t want to have kids yet.” He thought getting married automatically meant kids would come. He hadn’t read about puberty, sex, and childrearing, yet. Those sorts of books didn’t appeal to him, so he was undereducated in that subject.

“We’ll get married at eighteen, like it was before the adults died.” Biggie smiled at her and played with Branch’s hair.

“I’ll be your reverend. I’ll start studying about it right away!” Sapphire giggled and headed for the library. She had something to look forward to now.

“She’s so weird.” Branch sighed and took Biggie’s hand. He led him towards the kitchen. He had no plans of marrying any time soon.

As her sister got busy reading in the library, Jade finally rolled out of bed. She was naked, as any other glitter troll would be in a warm environment, but it became clear right away that she was bloody between her legs. She had never been educated about puberty, so she immediately went into panic mode. She hurried to the bathroom and cleaned herself up. She frowned when she noticed that the blood kept coming. Even though it wasn’t a lot, it scared her. She headed for the kitchen and walked over to Jaxon. She took his hand and tugged on it. “Jaxon, I’ve got an emergency.”

Jaxon turned to her and frowned. “What is it?”

“I’m bleeding from my private area.” Jade whispered. She was scared and trembling with fear.

Jaxon led her towards the medical area. He checked her over and found that it was coming from between her legs. He gave her a cloth to put between her legs and smiled softly. “It’s normal. It’ll last a few days and come once a month. My mom bled like that too. It’s alright. It just means you’re becoming a teenager.”

The reality of the situation took a minute to sink in. Jade began to shake with fear. “I’m going to die from the adult disease.”

“Naw, you’re going to be just fine. Garnet’s going through puberty too, and Branch, Sky, and I are also starting to show signs of it. You’re going to be just fine.” Jaxon gave her a hug. “Don’t stress about it, OK?” He led her towards the bathroom so she could take care of her business privately. “Congratulations Jade. You’re our first woman since the adult apocalypse. I’m sure you’re going to be just fine.” He closed the bathroom door so she could place the cloth privately.

Jade didn’t look so sure, but she did recall that Garnet was tall. She wanted to trust Jaxon, but she was still scared. She folded the cloth and stuck it between her legs. It felt weird. She pulled a pair of panties out of her hair and slipped them on. She had a dress in there too. She put that on and headed towards the kitchen. She hoped Jaxon was right. She didn’t want to die. Sapphire needed her.


	14. A Lovely Bond

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A sweet bond forms between Sapphire and two of the trollings.

For the next month, everyone settled down to a good routine. Sapphire was learning how to control her bowels and bladder more, but did sit on something absorbent, just in case she didn’t make it.

It was full blown spring now, and spring onions were ready for harvest. Branch gathered several of the older trollings, to help him forage. Food supplies were getting low, and they needed to refill their food supply. He frowned when he saw Sapphire line up to go. He didn’t think it was a good idea for her to go. He walked over to her and shook his head. “I don’t think so Sapphire. You’re going to stay here.”

“I’m capable to helping find food, thank you very much. Jade and I know what to look for. We managed for two months of winter in harsh conditions. Spring harvest is going to be easy.” Sapphire glared at him, challenging him to question her otherwise.

“Come here missy, you’re going to help me babysit.” Garnet grabbed Sapphire’s wheelchair and pushed her towards the fireplace. He didn’t get far, before she gave him a good whack with her hair. “Ouch!” He rubbed his chest where she hit him.

“Good luck with her Garnet.” Branch hurried everyone else out the door, before Sapphire tried to follow.

“I’m going with them! Stop controlling my chair. Damn it Garnet!” Sapphire sneered and whacked him a few times as he held her chair still. “I want to go! Stop holding my chair!”

“Good lord! You’re making me sore!” Garnet complained. He could see by her emotional aura that she was pissed. He let go of her once the door got closed. He sighed and rubbed where she had hit him with her hair. He was sore all over.

“Why are you hitting my brother?!” Pearl came over to Sapphire and began whapping Sapphire angrily. She squealed when Sapphire wrapped her up in her hair. “Let me go!” She wasn’t going to tolerate Sapphire being mean.

Basil came running over and tried to hug Pearl to calm her down. He found her wrapped in hair. He growled and glanced around blindly. “Let her go!” He felt around for the source of Pearl’s capture.

Sapphire pulled Pearl closer, and then picked her up. “I’m sorry. Your brother made me mad.” She hugged Pearl. She liked the tiny toddler. She didn’t like that she was stuck babysitting when she wanted to help harvest, but she didn’t mind hanging out with Pearl and Basil. She scooped up Basil next and held them both.

Both toddlers calmed down and snuggled into her. They loved her and were just protecting Garnet and each other.

Garnet smiled softly and faced Sapphire. “I’m sorry for making you stay.” He knelt to her level and looked at her. “Pearl really loves you, and I don’t want anything to happen to you. She would be heart broken. I know you’re very independent already, but if a predator snatches you up and eats you, I would have a very sad Pearl and Basil to reassure. Please understand that we’re just trying to protect you and the hearts of the trollings who love you.”

“I’m not weak.” Sapphire grumbled angrily. She didn’t like that she had been treated different then what she was used to since her back injury. She felt she was just as capable of doing harvest as everyone else.

“No, you’re not. You’re extremely strong. You endured an injury that most trolls would have given up and curled up into a ball to die over. You’re not giving up, and you’re certainly not weak.” Garnet smiled at her. He understood that she was frustrated. He couldn’t imagine being in her position.

“Thanks Garnet…” Sapphire sighed and propelled towards the fireplace. She settled down beside it and held Pearl and Basil close. “Us differently abled trollings have to take care of each other, right Basil and Pearl?” She may not have been disabled as long as the toddlers, but she knew how frustrating it was to be different.

“Take care if I know how.” Pearl smiled at her and patted her cheek lightly. “I’m sorry for whapping you. I has to protect big brother.”

“Love you…” Basil put his hand up to Sapphire’s face and smiled when he felt her smile. “Big smile.” He giggled and began searching through her hair for toys, books, or anything he could play with. He pulled out a pair of socks and widened his eyes. “Eww!” He threw them behind himself. The pair of socks happened to land in the fireplace.

Garnet tried to grab it before it landed in the fire, but he wasn’t fast enough. He groaned and watched the pair of socks burn. “Basil…”

Sapphire’s eyes went wide as her socks got tossed into the fireplace. She couldn’t help but snort out a giggle. “I hate clothes anyway.” She shrugged and pulled out a book from her hair. She opened it and began reading to Basil and Pearl.

Pearl listened to her read and reached over to grab Basil’s hand. She loved listening to stories.

Basil grinned and held Pearl’s hand as he leaned into Sapphire. He loved hearing stories too. He helped her by turning the pages. Sometimes he turned the pages too soon, but Sapphire was patient with him, and gently turned the page back over so she could finish. He liked this. Sapphire was nicer than most of the older trollings to him, and most of the other trollings never were patient with him. He hoped she would stick around forever.


	15. Until Death Departs You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A child marriage ends in laughter.

A couple of months later, Sapphire began gathering everyone. She had prepared and put on a white skirt with a black suit top and clerical collar. She had her hair styled nicely, and her cheeks had blush. She looked cute and had worked hard to prepare for this day. Once everyone was gathered in the largest room in the bunker, which was the study that had the fireplace. She asked Biggie to get Branch and meet her over by the fireplace. She had a demonic grin on her face. She had Jaxon, Garnet, Darling, Poppy, Goldie, and Guy Diamond in on her plan. She was going to marry the cute couple, and no one was going to let them leave so it could be done. It wasn’t going to be legal standing, since it wasn’t Poppy who was marrying them. Sapphire knew this, but she wanted to play this game with the boys, to officially get back at him for being so mean to her and her sister the first day they met.

Biggie led Branch towards the study. “Sapphire wanted to start church. She says it’s very important that we continue to be religious. I agree with her. We’re very lucky that we all survived the last year since all the adults got sick and started to die.”

“She’s up to no good. I’ve come to know her all too well the last few months. She’s got something on her mind. She’s far too smart for her own good.” Branch had a feeling this was a trick. Sapphire had fought with him and gave him a hard time constantly. She made him very uncomfortable. He frowned when he came in and saw that she was dressed nicely. “She looks like a preacher. OK, maybe it is church.” He looked wary anyway. She was a sneaky girl.

“You came just in time Branch.” Poppy smiled at him and led him and Biggie towards Sapphire. “Stand right over here.” She had them stand right in front of Sapphire and had them face each other. “Sapphire was so kind to volunteer marrying you two. It’s so sweet. I think she’s starting to like you.” She hugged them and smiled at them. She thought this was a cute game. She didn’t mind playing along.

Biggie’s eyes went wide. He looked at Poppy and frowned. “Poppy? We’re not eighteen yet.” He didn’t want to break rules.

Branch shot a glare at Sapphire. “Absolutely not!”

“You don’t want to marry your boyfriend?!” Sapphire put her hands over her mouth. “I thought you loved him!”

Jaxon tried not to laugh. He held his gut and let out a snort. He ignore the glaring that came from both Biggie and Branch.

“I’ll make an acceptation to the rules this time.” Poppy mused. She put a flower in Biggie’s hair, and a flower in Branch’s hair. She then pulled out a camera and took a few pictures. “You two are so cute together!” She gushed over them, even though Biggie was nervous, and Branch looked livid.

“I think I’m going to faint.” Biggie fanned himself and looked down at Branch. He was worried that Branch wouldn’t accept. He loved him and didn’t want them to break up. “I love you Branch…”

“Fine…” Branch finally accepted. He knew there had to be a catch. Sapphire was up to something. He had a bad feeling that he was going to regret accepting this. “I love you Biggie…” He squeezed his hands, to reassure him that he wasn’t mad or upset at him.

Sapphire smiled and cleared her throat. “Thank you everyone for gathering here today. I brought you all here to unite two young individuals into holy matrimony. If anyone objects to this union, speak now or forever hold your peace.” She looked around and noticed that everyone was quiet. She looked at Branch and smiled. “Branch, do you take Biggie, to have and to hold, through sickness and health, until death departs you?”

“Of course…” Branch smiled up at Biggie. He wasn’t going to turn down his boyfriend. He wanted him happy.

“Biggie, do you take Branch, to have and to hold, through sickness and health, until death departs you?” Sapphire smiled up at the large trolling.

“I do…” Biggie swallowed hard. He was nervous. He didn’t really want to do this so young, but the pressure had him sweating. He didn’t want to disappoint Poppy or Branch.

“Then by the power invested by me, you are now husbands. You may kiss each other!” Sapphire smiled at them and leaned forward to watch them squirm.

“Do we have to?” Branch wasn’t really interested in kissing. Especially in front of everyone.

Biggie groaned and pulled Branch close. He kissed him anyway. He didn’t want to mess this up.

Jaxon snorted a giggle. He was very amused.

Branch squirmed a bit and looked at Biggie with wide eyes. He wasn’t sure what to do. He made a smack sound with his lips, but it wasn’t much of a kiss. He was very embarrassed.

Biggie let him go and hugged him. “I love you Branch.”

“I love you too, Biggie.” Branch wiped his mouth with the back of his arm. He liked the kiss, but he felt it necessary to act disgusted by the kiss. He was still a kid, and it just felt weird.

“Congratulations on getting married. I look forward to seeing a baby from the each of you in about six months. Let me know if you need a babysitter.” Sapphire giggled and propelled her way to Jade. She was beyond amused.

“Wait, what?!” Biggie’s mouth dropped open. He looked at Branch in shock, before fainting and flopping to the floor. He wasn’t ready for children at all. 

Branch’s eyes went wide. He laid Biggie flat and fanned him. “Oh my god! Are you alright?!” He looked surprised. He recalled that not long after marriage, many of the newly wed trolls had children. He feared that Sapphire was right. He wasn’t ready for children either. He felt like he was a father, to just about all of the bunker’s occupants. He wasn’t sure how he was going to handle having a baby too.

Jaxon couldn’t hold back laughing anymore. He held his gut and laughed so loudly that his belly hurt. He knew they weren’t pregnant. That wasn’t how pregnancy worked. He wondered if Branch and Biggie knew the truth. He didn’t plan on telling them. He promised Sapphire that he wouldn’t give away anything. He ignored Branch’s glare when he noticed that he was glaring at him.

“I’ll help babysit too!” Darling giggled and stuck out her tongue when Branch glared at her too.

Sapphire giggled and parked herself by Jade. She smiled up at her twin. “I did that.”

“You sure did. Those poor boys.” Jade giggled and put her hands over her mouth. “Becoming daddies so young.”

Biggie began to come to. He looked up at Branch and whimpered. “I don’t want to have a baby Branch. Not yet…”

“I don’t either Biggie, but we’ll figure this out.” Branch caressed his cheek and kept his eyes on Jaxon and Sapphire. He had a feeling this was a trick. He planned to read about childrearing. Something was fishy, and he was determined to find out what was going on.


	16. A Prank Too Far

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch tries to get Sapphire back, but his attempt backfires.

It didn’t take long for Branch to figure out that in order to get pregnant, there had to be penetration. She got him good, and it had him steaming. He thought for a week, of how he could get her back. He decided tying her chair to the door handle and putting a piece of gum in her hair was the best way he could get her back. Trolls hated anything sticky in their hair, and with her chair tied up, she would have to get her chair untied to go fix her hair. He snuck up behind her later that morning and grabbed her chair. He pulled her back to a door handle and tied her chair up to the handle. Once the chair was secured, he took a piece of gum out of his mouth and stuck the wad right into her hair.

Sapphire wasn’t feeling good that morning and had just eaten. She shot a glance at Branch but didn’t think much of him moving her around. She sometimes got in the way and had gotten use to others moving her around without telling her why. She just assumed she was in the way. When the gum got put into her hair, she knew something was up. “What did you just put into my hair?” She went to grab it and widened her eyes when she realized it was gum. “Oh my god, are you kidding me?!” She went to propel her chair, but found it stuck. “Branch! This isn’t funny!” She tried to pull the gum out, but it only made it worse.

“This is for tricking Biggie and I into thinking we got pregnant from being married.” Branch stuck out his tongue and smirked.

Sapphire gave up on the gum when her stomach rumbled angrily. She began scrambling to untie her chair. It wasn’t easy considering the tie was behind her. “Help me Branch! I need to go right now!”

“Yeah right, you just want to be free. I’m going to let you fuss over that tie for a bit. Good luck.” Branch walked away snickering in amusement.

Sapphire looked around and frowned. No one else was around to help her. All of the other kids had already gone outside to play and get fresh air. She scrambled for another few minutes, until the situation became desperate. She heard her stomach rumble again, before a gush of diarrhea came out of her. It got on her absorbent pad. She gagged at the smell. “Branch! Please! I’m sorry for scaring you and Biggie, but I need to be untied right now!” She closed her eyes and gagged. “I’m going to be sick…” She had a stomach virus and had nowhere to go so that she didn’t mess on herself further.

Branch heard the apology. He came back into the room and frowned when he smelled poop. He thought at first that she pooped on purpose to be an ass, until he saw her heave up her breakfast. He cringed and went to grab a trashcan. He gave it to her and frowned. “Oh my god…” He once again felt bad for causing her inconvenience at the wrong time. He began untying her chair. He felt guilty for what he just did. “I’m sorry Sapphire. I didn’t realize you were sick.”

Sapphire finished getting sick. She sat the trashcan down and put her head back. She fought back the tears of frustration and sadness that she suddenly felt. She felt downright helpless at that moment. She shot a glare at Branch when he finished untying her chair, but the glare cracked into a frown. She sniffled and look away. “I’ll clean up my mess.” She sniffled and propelled towards the bathroom. She was glad she had an absorbent pad on her chair. It was going to make it a little easier to clean up. Once in the bathroom, she began to run a bath.

Branch took care of the trashcan, and then went to help her. He had a guilty look on his face.

Sapphire went to whap him with her hair and found that it was too sticky. She lost it. She began to sob into her hands. “Just go away! You’ve scrapped every ounce of my dignity away…” She finished running the bath and got busy trying to clean the vomit off her legs first. She didn’t feel good and was tired.

“I want to help you Sapphire.” Branch complained. He went to go get Jaxon. He called for him, and then came back with peanut butter. He got to work on breaking up the sticky wad that was in her hair.

Jaxon came in from outside and frowned when he picked up the scent of sickness. He came around the corner and cringed when he saw the mess all over Sapphire. “What happened?” He walked over to her and began to heal her of the illness.

“Prank gone wrong…” Sapphire sniffled and rubbed a few tears away. She was still crying. She was getting all emotional and hormonal. She hadn’t told anyone yet, but she had started her first menstrual cycle. The poor girl was miserable. She began to explain in detail what happened.

Branch continued to work on the gum quietly. He cringed when Jaxon smacked his butt. “I’m sorry…” He sighed heavily. “I didn’t mean to take it too far. I didn’t know she was sick.”

“Be nice to her Branch! She might be a frisky young lady, but she does have feelings! Pulling a prank is one thing but being cruel is another. What you just did was cruel.” Jaxon fused his brows and glared at him. “Think before you act, you grumpy brat.” He helped get most of the gross off Sapphire’s skin, and then lifted her and put her into the tub. He ignored her protests as he began to bathe her. “Stop fussing Sapphire. You’re weak from a fever. Let me take care of you.”

“I’m perfectly capable of bathing myself.” Sapphire grumbled crankily. She felt better now, but she was exhausted.

“Alright, I’m sorry. I’ll be nicer.” Branch sighed and went to work on cleaning up her wheelchair. He frowned when he saw that there was blood on her chair. He thought at first that she was injured but dismissed it when he realized it wasn’t much. He decided against addressing it, since he had already upset Sapphire so much. He took a pile of laundry away to wash. He came back with an absorbent pad. He laid it on the wheelchair’s seat.

Jaxon got Sapphire all cleaned up, and then left her to soak in the water. He set up her bed so she could get some rest. He came back, wrapped a towel around her, and picked her up. He carried her to her bed and laid her down. He toweled her dry, and then covered her up. “As the village doctor, I recommend getting some sleep. I’ll be back shortly with your chair.” He left to go get her chair and a clean cloth, since he saw that she was on her period.

Sapphire gave up on resisting and let him take care of her. She was too tired to resist. Not long after she was settled into bed, she dozed off, feeling clean, comfortable, and much better.

Branch turned the corner and watched her. He sighed and looked down at his feet. He felt bad for hurting her feelings.

“You two are already acting like you’re married to each other.” Jaxon mused as he walked past him. He parked her chair next to her bed. He also set up the cloth between Sapphire’s legs. Once she was all set, he shooed Branch out of the room so she could rest.

Branch blushed and shook his head. “We do not.” He dismissed the behavior as playful banter. They were playing games and he found nothing wrong with that. He didn’t mean to take it too far. He hoped Sapphire wasn’t mad at him. He sighed and went towards the kitchen. He had lunch to prepare for.


	17. A Missing Trolling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the trollings goes missing.

While Branch was busy inside, torturing Sapphire, cleaning up after her, and making lunch, the trollings were all busy playing outside. Several of them were playing hide and go seek. One of the eight-year-old males, a blue trolling with light blue hair, by the name of Blue, was hiding behind a tree, behind a blade of grass. While hiding, he was approached by Tourmaline. He gasped and went to run and hide from the scary male, but Tourmaline snatched him up. He went to scream, but Tourmaline put a piece of tape over his mouth.

Once he tied up Blue and made sure he couldn’t kick, scream, or hit him, Tourmaline headed towards Parch’s hide out. “Your leader forgot to leave out the weekly rations. You’re going to pay for his laziness.”

Blue whimpered and squirmed uncomfortable. Tourmaline scared him. He looked up at Tourmaline, with worried dark blue eyes. He cringed when Tourmaline threw him over his shoulder. He was petrified.

Tourmaline soon got back home. He dropped Blue by a fire and untied him. He removed the tape and pulled out his knife. “So, how would you like to die? And how would you like to be cooked? Filleted? Barbequed? Sautéed? Boiled for soup?” He liked his lips in anticipation.

“I don’t want to die!” Blue tried to run but was quickly grabbed by Parch. He screamed and tried to wriggle out of his grasp. He didn’t want to be cooked and eaten. That was just gross. “Please don’t eat me!”

Peace walked over and grabbed the boy’s arm. He kicked the boy’s right leg so hard that it snapped. A smirk spread over his face when Blue screamed in pain. He loved the sound of screaming.

Red walked over and shoved Peace. “I want a turn.” He began beating Blue angrily. “Your boss is an idiot! You’re going to pay for his negligence!”

Indigo watched with a piece of gum in his mouth. “Should have given us the payment. Now you get to die instead. I vote that we boil him alive.” He threw a large pot on the fire. It was already full of vegetables, water, and herbs. He poured some salt and pepper shavings in, and then grabbed Blue. He pulled out his knife and began cutting his hair off. He didn’t feel like eating the young male’s hair.

“Hold on! I want to roast his legs and arms.” Tourmaline began slicing his arms off. He threw them aside, and then cut Blue’s legs off next.

“Oh my god, he’s screaming so loudly. Shut him up!” Acorn walked over and grabbed Blue’s tongue. He yanked on it and cut it out. He taped his mouth shut and smirked as blood pooled around the young boy.

“I wonder how long he’ll live in the soup.” Parch grabbed what remained of Blue and tossed him into the pot.

Blue was screaming, but it was hardly audible through the tape. Whimpers escaped him as he quickly succumb to the hot water.

“Delicious.” Tourmaline poked him with a stick and licked his lips. “I think he’s dead.”

“That’s a shame. I would have thought he would live longer.” Peace shrugged and watched as Blue boiled in the soup. He didn’t care that Blue had suffered. None of them cared about him.

Back at the bunker, someone did care. Branch had called everyone in for lunch, but he didn’t see Blue. He looked around for him and called him. He found this highly unusual. Blue never skipped meals. That little boy loved food. He searched for him for hours, before giving up and going to bed. He hardly slept that night. He was petrified that something had caught and killed Blue. As morning rose, he got ready to go look for him outside. He hoped that Blue survived the night. He didn’t have to make it far, before he found a pile of bones, just like he had with Flower. Tears ran down his cheeks as he took care of the bones. He found a letter on the door from Parch. He was shaking as he read it.

“Since you’re too lazy to leave rations once a week, I have decided that I’ll kidnap one trolling a week to keep myself and my colleagues fed. You messed up Branch, and now your entire village is going to die.”

Branch crumbled up the paper and threw it aside. He went inside and approached Poppy. “We have to move Poppy. They got Blue. They’re not going to stop hurting us. We need to get to a safe home.” He hugged her and sniffled. He wished it wasn’t so.

Poppy’s ears drooped. She nodded and began to sob. Blue was close to her. She was very upset. He was supposed to be her king one day. They were betrothed. She wasn’t sure what they were going to do now. “I’ll get everyone gathered and we’ll decided what we need to bring. We’ll get as far from here as possible. I don’t want anyone else to die in their hands.” She sniffled and went to get everyone ready. She hoped that no one else died while they got out of there. She was extremely worried about them all.


	18. In Search Of A Safer Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trollings begin the search to find a safer home.

It took a few days to get everyone packed and ready. Everyone was carrying something, except for one-year old Smidge and Sapphire, although Sapphire had Smidge on her lap and a large backpack on the back of the wheelchair. She was feeling much better and had convinced the one-year old survivor to stay on her lap while they searched for a new home. She had a huge smile on her face, knowing that Smidge didn’t trust very many trolls.

Smidge was snuggled up to Sapphire. She had come to like the grumpy paraplegic. She wasn’t sure what was going on. Everyone had been so busy the last few days. They hardly played with her. She glared at Branch when he walked over and tried to pick her up. “No!” She snuggled right into Sapphire and buried her face into Sapphire’s glittery skin.

“You don’t want a piggie back ride?” Branch raised a brow and looked up at Sapphire. “She fell in love with you? Ugh…” He glared at Sapphire when she smirked up at him. He sighed and went to make sure he had grabbed everything they needed. He was leaving behind some food, supplies, and fresh water. Stuff he felt they could collect, make, and find easily. He was hoping that those things would keep Parch and his gang busy for a little while, so that they could get away from them. They had grabbed all the books they had found. They were still learning, and he didn’t want to leave behind important information. Once he was certain that they had all that they needed, he led them out the door and smiled at Poppy. “Is there a direction you would like to go?”

“I would love to head towards the ocean. I recall dad saying there was a lot of really good food there.” Poppy pulled out a map from her hair and laid it flat. She pointed to a coastal area, that looked like it had sandy hills and some cliffs near the ocean. She was hoping that food would be plentiful there. It wasn’t going to be easy to get there though. She hoped everyone would survive. Sapphire was one of her biggest concerns.

Branch nodded and smiled. “That’s a great idea. The food will be plentiful. We’ll have to watch out for predators there though. I think another underground home will help a lot.” He helped her fold up the map and tucked it into her hair. He gave her a hug. He knew she was having a really hard time with Blue’s death. He wasn’t sure how to help her other then give her comfort. He soon let her go and began leading them away from the bunker. He glanced at Sky. That bunker had been their home since their father died just under five years earlier. A home Peppy helped them make. He didn’t want to leave it, but Poppy had agreed that the colony needed to be safe.

Sapphire followed them and looked around. She had a feeling this was going to be rough. She wondered how they would cross rivers and streams. She wondered how they would climb on cliffs and mountains. She wondered how often they would rest. Her arms and head already hurt at the thought of all the modifications she was going to have to make in order to keep up.

Garnet carried Pearl for now. He had his concerns, but he felt that this was the best way. He wanted his family safe, and he wanted them all to live. Staying home meant almost certain death. None of them wanted to fight or kill. They were all still too young to think about war or how to kill murderers. They were all terrified.

Jaxon walked with his sisters. Both stayed close to him. He glanced around and shifted his bow. He was ready to shoot any predator that dared try to snatch them up. He also kept his eye out for Parch and his gang. He didn’t want to kill them unless he had to, but he was going to protect his friends and family.

Darling had Basil in her arms. She rubbed his back and began to sing. She had a determined look on her face. She felt that if they could survive this, they were going to make it. She smiled when everyone else started to sing with her.

They first day of travel went smoothly for the trollings. Branch made sure everyone was still with them, before having them hide in various spots to sleep for the night. He had taken the time they travelled to show them how to seek and eat raw food. He didn’t want to leave behind a trail. He didn’t want Parch or his gang to ever find them again. As he settled down for the night, he looked at the stars. He had Biggie’s right hand with his left hand. He silently prayed that they would all make it to the ocean unscathed.

Biggie gave Branch’s hand a squeeze. He wanted his husband to know that he was there for him, and he was supportive. He had his concerns, but he felt that with patience, hard work, and a little bit of luck, they were going to make it to their new home in one piece.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the song Darling and the other trollings sang. I do not own the song. All credit goes to the creators!
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo1VInw-SKc


	19. Flash Flood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected flood causes problems for the trollings.

During the middle of the night, a heavy rain poured over the area that the trollings slept. None of them thought anything of it. They were all sheltered and dry, so there wasn’t any problems. Most of the trollings slept through the downpour. It wasn’t until a shriek filled the air that anyone knew that something was wrong.

Satin and Chenille had slept close to the river, so that they could listen to the flowing river. They were in a crevasse, and it began to fill with water. Satin managed to wriggle her way out of the crevasse, before the roof of their temporary home collapsed. She screamed in fear and horror. Her sister would have certainly been crushed under the weight of the dirt, but she hoped that she was alright under all that dirt, water, and mud. She was petrified that her twin would die, but she had to do something. She was also stuck to her. They were connected by the hair. “Help us!” She tried to dig Chenille out. Her eyes widened as the water began to rise quickly. She was terrified that they would both drown. She trembled as she felt pain and anxiety radiating from her twin.

Sky, Branch, and Jaxon came running over to help her. They shouted for everyone else to climb a local tree. They worked together to dig out Chenille. They were all very worried about her. 

Poppy and Biggie helped the trollings climb the tree. Both looked extremely worried. They could see the struggle near the river. Biggie picked up Sapphire and carried her up the tree. He had a hold of her wheelchair with his hair.

Satin slipped in the water and fell. She felt Jaxon grab her. She held onto him and sobbed. “I’m so scared!” The ten-year-old trolling was trembling with fear.

As the water rose higher, the situation became dire. Branch was almost certain at this point that Chenille had at least drown. He gave up on trying to save her and turned his focus to Satin. He pulled out his knife and grabbed her hair. “I’m sorry Satin. We have to save you.” He cut her hair, freeing her from Chenille.

Jaxon picked Satin up and hurried towards the tree. Tears ran down his cheeks. He hated to think of what Chenille went through in her last few minutes of life. He felt awful for the poor trolling. He got to the tree and began carrying her up.

Sky and Branch were right behind him. They climbed up the tree and looked around at all the trollings. Everyone had survived the flash flood, except for Chenille. They were both speechless. They hadn’t seen that coming.

Satin was sobbing. She clung to Jaxon and trembled. She had a very strong bond to Chenille. Even though they were fraternal twins, they had connected themselves by the hair while still in their mother’s pod. It was troll legend that trollings that shared their hair with their twins were inseparable. Their bond may have been broken, but Satin had felt every last pain that Chenille had experienced. She gasped for air and began coughing. She felt like she was drowning and being crushed.

Poppy came over to Satin and held her. She ran her hand through Satin’s grayed three toned hair. “I’m so sorry Satin.” Tears ran down her cheeks. She knew how hard it was to lose someone so close to the heart. She was heartbroken for her.

Garnet watched Satin’s spirit. He had a bad feeling that the broken bond might kill Satin. It wasn’t uncommon for hair tied twins to die together. He had a bad feeling in the pit of his gut that this tragedy would end up being a double tragedy.

“Deep breaths Satin. You’ve got to breathe.” Branch patted her back gently. He looked scared. He had a close bond with Sky, and he couldn’t imagine losing his twin. He feared she wouldn’t survive this either. “We’re all here for you.” He had tears running down his cheeks.

Sky sniffled and rubbed his nose. He had dreamt about losing Branch in a similar manner. He was traumatized but was afraid to say anything. It freaked him out that he seemed to have a dream that predicted the future.

Satin took slow breaths. She slowly calmed down and sniffled. She buried her face into Poppy’s dress. She was best friends with Poppy and had no plans of letting her go any time soon. She was shaking hard with anxiety, fear, and grief.

No one slept for the rest of the night. They all huddled together for comfort and warmth. They all knew that any of them could have been the victim of this tragedy. They all hoped that Satin would cope without her twin. They didn’t want to lose her too.


	20. Finding A New Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trollings find a home sooner than expected.

For the next week, the trollings continued their travels. No one else died as they made their way towards the ocean. They were only a couple of miles away when Branch found a huge patch of raspberries. He had everyone stop and eat. Raspberries were an extremely important treat. Not only did it provide a lot of nutrition, but the leaves made great tea. The leaves and fruit were medicinal too. As he looked around, he found more herbs and food in this area. As appealing as it felt to go another two miles, he was starting to think this would be a great place to settle. After eating a second raspberry, he walked over to Poppy and Satin. The two of them had been inseparable since Chenille died. “I know we’re so close to the ocean, but this place is ideal. It’s got great coverage, lots of food, and medicinal herbs. I think settling here would be a good idea. We can always make trips to the ocean to gather extra food. It’s not that far away.”

Poppy looked around and then gave a firm nod. “I agree Branch. I think this will be a great place to settle. I’ll have everyone help us with settling. Until we’re older and can defend ourselves properly, I think another bunker would be beneficial.”

“I agree. A bunker is very safe.” Satin whispered. She had hardly spoken since Chenille died. She looked around, and sniffled. She cracked a smile when she saw cotton bushes. She was thinking of making clothes. She knew that a lot of them were wearing their parents’ clothes, or hand me downs. They were going to need new and freshly made clothes soon, and her mother had taught her and her sister how to sew. She needed to get her mind off the sadness of losing her twin.

Branch nodded in agreement. He began searching for a safe place to make a bunker. It had to be high enough that flooding wouldn’t be a problem, but close enough to the food and fresh water that they didn’t have to go far to grab some. He found a rocky hill not far from the raspberry bush. He looked for soft soil near it so that he could dig. He had a feeling he was going to have to fashion up a pickaxe. Rocks were going to get in the way. He stopped when he found a latch near the base of the hill. A rocky ledge hung over it, protecting it from the rain. He widened his eyes, realizing that a survivalist either lived here, or use to live here. They were very lucky to find it. He knocked on the door, to test if there was an occupant. He didn’t want to just intrude if the occupant was still alive.

A burgundy colored trolling with maroon red hair and light blue green eyes, lived in that bunker. Her name was Primrose, but she liked the nickname her father gave her. She went by the name of Rosie. The thirteen-year old trolling heard the knock on her door. She pushed her glasses up on her nose and frowned. “Who on earth is that?” She walked towards the door and cracked open the entrance. She gasped, seeing another trolling, close to the same age as she was. “Go away!” She slammed the door shut hard and locked it. She put her hand on her chest and whimpered. She was terrified of catching the adult disease, and she would rather die alone, then risk getting sick from the horrible disease.

Sky heard a door slam. He came running over to investigate. He smirked when he saw the entrance. “Someone already lives here. I wonder if there are others.” He was shocked. The area looked unoccupied. The occupant of the bunker had done a good job of keeping hidden.

A look of shock was all over Branch’s face. He frowned and crossed his arms. He wasn’t happy that the young bunker dweller had slammed her door on him. “I don’t think there is anyone else. It’s too clean around here.” He looked at Sky. “She slammed the door on my face…”

“Now you know how Jade and I felt.” Sapphire came propelling over. She parked herself by Branch and smirked. “Doesn’t feel good to have someone turn you down, does it?”

Rosie peeked outside to see if he left. She had a spray bottle of disinfectant to decontaminate her door. She growled when she saw that there were now two more. One that looked like the first trolling, and a female in a wheelchair. “I said go away! You’re going to contaminate my living quarters! I don’t want to get the disease!” She gritted her teeth when Sky walked closer. “I’m warning you! I’ve got a knife!”

Sky walked over to the door and smiled. “You won’t get the disease. None of us are sick, and the last adult died almost nine months ago. Is it alright if we settle here? It looks like you have plenty of food in this area. We can help make medicine, clothes, and other supplies. It’ll be better to live with a group, then to be alone.”

Branch grumbled that the ocean was starting to sound really nice. He glared at Rosie when she yelled at them.

“She acts just like you Branch.” Sapphire giggled and nudged him towards the bunker door. “Go negotiate.”

“I don’t act like that!” Branch grumbled as he walked over to stand by Sky. “What will it take for us to move into this area?”

“You do too.” Sky whispered to Branch. He yelped when his brother poked him in the ribs. “It’s the truth…”

“I don’t want or need anything! Get out of my territory!” Rosie frowned and opened the door. She began spraying Sky and Branch with the disinfectant. She had a stern look on her face.

Sapphire cracked up and began to laugh. “Oh my god! You’re both getting your asses sprayed. I’m going to bust a gut. I like her already.”

Sky groaned and backed up. The disinfectant smelled mostly like vinegar. His eyes and nose burned from the acidic spray. He shot a glance at Branch. “Let’s go Branch. She doesn’t want us here.” He rubbed his face and whimpered.

Branch ignored the spray. He grabbed Rosie by the arm and pinned her to her bunker wall, knocking her glasses off her face. “I don’t know what your problem is, but I’ve dealt with enough bullshit lately! I’ve had over a hundred kids under my care, and I’ve lost three of them due to tragedies I wish not to discuss! What the fuck did you just spray on my brother and I? Poison?! If we both die, you’re going to be in a whole lot of shit! I’m the advisor of my colony, and my queen will be livid if my brother and I die!” He didn’t trust Rosie at all, and was angry that she may have possibly poisoned him and Sky. He was very protective of Sky. He was the only blood family he had left.

Rosie squealed when Branch pinned her to the wall. She struggled for a little bit, and then began to cry. “I’m going to die now. Thanks a lot! All over some dish soap mixed with vinegar water…”

“Branch, you’re being an ass again.” Sapphire crossed her arms and glared at him. “Let her go and let’s get out of here.”

“It’s alright Branch. It’s not poison.” Sky walked over and pulled his brother away. He cringed when Branch stepped on Rosie’s glasses. “Let’s go. We’ll leave her alone and move to a different spot nearby. There is plenty of food around here. It’s going to be alright.”

Branch grumbled as he was dragged away from Rosie. He showed no remorse for crushing the frame of her glasses. “Fine, we’ll move halfway from here to the ocean.” He showed no remorse for upsetting Rosie.

Rosie sniffled and began feeling around for her glasses. She found them and picked them up. She noticed right away that the frames were broken. She frowned and sank to the ground. She began crying into her hands. She couldn’t see well at all without her glasses. She was angry that they were broken, and that she had been exposed to other trolls who had been around sick adults.

Sapphire watched Rosie and frowned, noticing she appeared to be mostly blind without her glasses. She propelled closer and pulled the glasses out of Rosie’s hands. “Jaxon could probably fix these before we go. I’ll be right back.” She left to get Jaxon so he could fix her glasses.

Branch and Sky left Rosie to talk to Poppy. They were set on moving on. Rosie had angered them both.

About an hour later, Sapphire returned to Rosie’s bunker with her glasses. She knocked on the door and waited for an answer.

Rosie came back and opened the door. She saw dark blue. She sniffled and crossed her arms. “What now?” She looked suspicious and nervous. Her hair was wet from taking a bath.

“Here…” Sapphire pulled Rosie’s arm out and put her glasses in her hand. “Sorry about Branch. He can be such an ass.”

Rosie frowned and put her glasses on. He looked at Sapphire and sighed. “Don’t go yet. I want to talk to your queen. I’ve done some thinking, and perhaps we can negotiate. Thank you for getting my glasses fixed. Give me an hour. Tell her to meet me here.” She closed the door, and then headed back into her bunker. She wanted her hair to dry and finish washing her clothes. She had soiled herself in fear when Branch pinned her. He had really scared her. Just like Branch and Sky, she had had a very rough past. She didn’t trust anyone, but Sapphire had changed her mind. It was clear that this colony cared about each other. Sapphire looked well cared for and she liked that Sapphire assured her glasses were fixed.

A smile spread onto Sapphire’s face. She had a good feeling about this. She was glad she changed Rosie’s mind. She propelled towards Poppy, with hopes that they had found their new home. This area really was ideal.


	21. Negotiations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rosie makes a deal with Poppy.

An hour later, Rosie reappeared at the front door. She opened the door and looked outside. She was surprised to find a ten-year-old trolling, who had no color to her skin or hair. She wondered why she was gray. It couldn’t possibly be because of losing her parents. The mean gray one had mentioned that the adults had been dead for nearly nine months. She glanced around, seeing that there were several other trollings around them. Half of them were gray. Something had to have happened recently. This colony was so sad. She wondered what happened. “I only want to talk to the queen.”

Poppy stepped forward. She bit her bottom lip. “I heard that you’re wary. If you don’t want us to stay, we can leave. We’ve sort of have our hearts set on the ocean anyway. I came to apologize about Branch. It’s not my story to tell, but he has massive trust issues.”

“Oh no, it’s fine. I appreciate that my glasses got fixed. Come into my bunker please?” Rosie motioned her in. “My name is Primrose. You can call me Rosie.”

“I’m Queen Poppy. You can just call me Poppy.” Poppy followed her into her bunker.

Branch saw this and fumed with anger. He didn’t think it was wise for Poppy to go in alone. He hoped Rosie didn’t kill her.

Rosie closed the door and led her towards her living quarters. “I’m sorry, it’s a little scattered in here right now. I had a spider come in a week ago, and I’ve been decontaminating everything. I have asthma and allergies, and it makes it so that anything I catch is awful. I try to avoid letting anything in, and I try not to go out too much.” She glanced at Poppy. “Is it true that the adult disease is gone?” She looked nervous. “And does your doctor know about medicine that helps with asthma and allergies? Can he make me new glasses? Do you have a healer?”

“Your bunker is spotless.” Poppy looked around in amazement. Rosie’s bunker was clean, well kept, and smelled good. She smiled at Rosie when she asked all the questions. “The adult disease is gone. The last troll has been dead for almost nine months. It is assumed to be a blood born disease, according to one of the doctors who studied the disease. No one else has died, so we are sure it’s gone. Branch or Sky would probably know the medicinal question. They know all sorts of medicines. Jaxon made Sapphire’s wheelchair, so he might be able to make you new glasses. We have three healers, with a possible fourth. Jaxon, Darling, and Garnet are healers. Breeze might be one too, but she’s still a little bit young. She hasn’t been sick, ever, but she hasn’t healed anyone herself.”

“That makes me feel so much better. My vision is getting worse, and although my glasses help, everything is blurry. I’ve been afraid to get sick too. Having healers around will be a blessing. I’m still scared though. I’ll let you all stay, so long as everyone stays out of my bunker. I don’t want to catch a cold or the flu.” Rosie shuddered at the thought. “I prefer to be alone honestly.”

“I’ll tell everyone to leave you alone. Thank you so much Rosie.” Poppy pulled Rosie in for a hug. She was a lot more relaxed, knowing that they could settle down in a safe home. If Rosie was here and alive, all alone, this couldn’t have been too bad of a place.

Rosie was tense as Poppy hugged her. She gave her back a few pats, and then broke the hug. She sighed and looked away. “I’m sorry, I know it’s not a troll thing to hate hugs, but I’ve become so paranoid. I’ve been so sick, more then I’d like to think about. I don’t like being touched.”

“I’ll take note of that.” Poppy smiled and backed away. “Is there anything you would like right now?”

“I’d like to talk to Jaxon. I want new glasses, so badly.” Rosie looked hopeful.

“Of course, Rosie. Thank you so much.” Poppy headed for the door. She opened the door. “Your turn Jaxon.” She let him in, and then closed the door. “We’re staying!” She smiled when everyone began cheering happily, except for Branch.

Branch facepalmed. He didn’t like Rosie. She made him extremely nervous and she was worse than Sapphire.

Inside Rosie’s bunker, Jaxon walked over to Rosie. “You’re the trolling that Branch was so angry about? You don’t look like a threat.” He smiled softly. Branch was so dramatic.

Rosie rubbed her arm nervously. She glared at him when he mentioned that she didn’t look like a threat. She was insulted. She took a deep breath and sighed. “You must me Jaxon? I heard you might be able to make me a pair of glasses?”

“I’m afraid I don’t have the knowledge for it, but I can make that my first project now that we’re settled. I saw your glasses. They’re very scratched up. How old are they?” Jaxon saw that Rosie was nervous. He tried not to look scary.

“I’ve had them for three years. They don’t fit right anymore, and everything is blurry.” Rosie looked disappointed. She was worried that she was going to have to cope without glasses soon. They were not going to last forever.

“Don’t look sad. I’ll try hard to make you new glasses. I’ll just need some time.” Jaxon walked over and took them off her face. He inspected them again, and checked how the lenses were made, and what material. “I’ll see what I can do.” He looked up at her and smiled. He put her glasses back on her face. “Welcome to the family Rosie. Let me know if you need anything.” He gave her a hug and chuckled when she got tense. “Relax, I’m not going to hurt you.”

“I don’t like being touched.” Rosie pushed him off her. She moved away and sighed. “I’ll make you some pants in exchange for the new glasses. What color do you like?” She noticed that his clothes were tight and looked uncomfortable.

“I like green or blue.” Jaxon smiled at her. He had a feeling she was going to be a hard shell to crack. She didn’t seem to trust at all, just like Branch.

“I can make those colors easily. Thank you for your help.” Rosie backed away, in hopes of avoiding another hug.

Jaxon smiled and backed away. “Have a good night Rosie. Thank you for letting us stay. We’ll figure out how to help each other. It’s going to be alright.” He headed out the door. He had a feeling that with time and patience, Rosie was going to be beneficial for them all. She seemed like an intelligent and kind young lady, despite what Branch and Sky told him. He looked forward to getting to know her more.


	22. Snot Nosed Brats

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basil and Pearl give Rosie a hard time.

It took a week for everyone to get settled. Branch had made his own bunker not far from Rosie’s bunker. He had had help by most of the older trollings, so it didn’t take as long as it had taken when him and Sky were eight years old. He didn’t make any contact with Rosie. He thought this whole idea of staying in her territory was a horrible idea, although he never saw her come out of her bunker. He wondered what she ate and where she got her water.

Rosie had an underground spring, where she collected water, but she knew it was time to get out and collect raspberries, if she wanted to get those as a food supply. She covered herself with a layer of thick lotion, that was mixed with an herb that she knew was an antihistamine. She was allergic to some of the pollens that she would likely breathe in. She wanted to do this with as little allergic reaction as possible. She grabbed a large sack and threw it over her shoulder. She headed outside to pick raspberries. Jam, jelly, scented soap, candy, juice, and dried berries were on her agenda for the week. She was always busy after she harvested. She also grew underground mushrooms that were edible and didn’t need sunlight. She was very resourceful. As she got outside, she stepped out and closed the door. She headed straight for the raspberry bush. She planned on collecting leaves too. They made delicious tea.

Pearl saw Rosie leave her bunker. She tugged on Basil and led him towards her bunker. She reached up with her hair and opened the door. She headed inside with him and closed the door so that they could explore without getting caught. She headed down a dark hallway and smiled when she came into a kitchen. She began looking around for candy.

Basil’s nose was filled with the sweet scent of honeydew melon. He walked over to a candle and put it in his mouth. He made a face and stuck out his tongue. “Yuck!” He threw the candle behind him, which was ceramic and broke the moment it hit the ground. He felt around and wiped his nose. He was just starting to catch a cold. He stopped when he felt stairs. He frowned and felt for how steep it was. “No stairs!” He was mad because he knew Sapphire couldn’t get around in this bunker.

Pearl walked over to Basil and looked down the stairs. “Let’s go down there.” She led him towards the basement of the bunker.

Basil followed her and listened to his surroundings. He smelled the spring water. Once at the bottom, he walked over and dipped his hand in. “Water!” He began drinking it. He was thirsty. “Yummy…” He slurped it up. It tasted way better than the river water.

Pearl took a drink and licked her lips. “So good.” She drank her fill, and then looked around for a place to go potty. “Let’s go to the bathroom.”

Basil followed her and held himself. He wasn’t wearing clothes, but he did try to make it to the toilet, even though he was still a young toddler.

Pearl made her way back up the stairs with Basil. She got to the top and looked around for a toilet.

“Need to potty.” Basil whimpered and pushed his hand harder against himself. He frowned as he began peeing himself. He didn’t move, remembering that his older brother would get mad if he ran around while peeing.

“Uh oh…” Pearl looked around for a towel. She found one and put it under Basil, like she remembered Garnet doing all the time when she had accidents, or when Basil had accidents. Garnet was always patient with them, because he knew they were learning. She squirmed from needing to go pee herself. She still had no idea where the toilet was. She let the towel go and held herself as she too, also peed herself. She burst into tears and began to cry. “I had an accident!”

Basil frowned and helped her clean up. There was pee all over the towel from them both. Once they were all dry, he led her towards the door. “Is OK Pearl. I won’t tell.”

Rosie came back with her bag of raspberries. She opened the door and gasped when she saw the toddlers. She put her sack down and walked over to them. “You two are not supposed to be in here.” She saw that Basil had a runny nose. She cringed and picked him up. She carried him towards the door with a worried expression on her face. She really hoped what she saw coming out of Basil’s nose was from allergies. She sat him down outside and shuddered. “Who’s in charge of these babies?!” She could smell pee, which didn’t surprise her, but she had a bad feeling they had peed in her bunker. She was going to have a mess to clean up.

Basil had a huge smirk on his face. “I like your home. It smells good!” He frowned when she mentioned that they were babies. “No! Not a baby!” He threw himself on the ground and screamed angrily.

Pearl glared at Rosie and huffed. “How rude!”

Garnet heard her and came hurrying over. He smiled softly and nudged them towards Branch’s bunker. “Go take a bath you two.” He helped Basil to his feet and nudged him. “Go on!” He noticed Basil was sick. He quickly and quietly healed the little scamp.

“No!” Basil growled angrily, before storming off to go play somewhere else. He didn’t care that he smelled like pee.

Pearl followed Basil and giggled as she gave chase. She didn’t care that she was stinky either.

“Does he have a cold?” Rosie looked worried. She hurried into her bunker to wash her hands.

“I think so, but don’t worry. If he gave it to you, I’ll heal you. Just come to me at the first sign of being sick.” Garnet followed her inside to clean up whatever mess Pearl and Basil made. He smiled, noticing she was immaculate. He picked up the towel. “Where do you wash your laundry?”

Rosie pointed to a basin not far from where he was standing. She got to work cleaning up her hands and arms. She began hyperventilating. She was very freaked out that she might catch a cold. She started having trouble breathing. The hyperventilating aggravated her asthma. Being outside that day didn’t help either. She always had an asthma attack after going outside.

Garnet got to work on cleaning the towel. He frowned, hearing her struggle to breathe. He turned to her and frowned, seeing she was panicking quietly. He hurried over and picked her up. “Slow, steady breaths Rosie. It’s alright.” He carried her towards Branch’s bunker, where they had been making new medications.

Rosie wheezed and looked up at Garnet with a worried expression. She began coughing hard. She held her chest and let out a whimper.

Garnet got her inside and sat her down in a bed. He grabbed a cup of coffee that was left over from breakfast and gave it to her. “Sip on this slowly. Tiny gulps.” He went to grab herbs that had antihistamines. He crushed them up and stirred some into the coffee.

Rosie sat up and leaned forward in the bed. She had her mouth open as she struggled to breathe. After several tiny sips of coffee, mixed with antihistamines, she finally began to calm down. She coughed up clear mucus, due to her asthma attack. She was trembling from anxiety and the caffeine.

“Do you do that often?” Garnet looked worried. He had a feeling he now knew why she was so paranoid. That whole ordeal had been terrifying.

“It’s bad during the spring and summer, but it calms down in the fall and winter.” Rosie wheezed. “It’s much worse when I’m sick. Thank you for the medicine…” She looked wary. She used to get in trouble for those sorts of attacks. Her anxiety always made it worse. She had a feeling she was now going to get yelled at for something she couldn’t control.

“You shouldn’t live alone. That can kill you.” Garnet healed her the best he could. He had a feeling that he wasn’t going to make the asthma feel better with healing. “I’m going to research asthma medications in the books we brought. I’m sure we can figure out something you can take everyday to relieve some of those symptoms.”

“I don’t want to get sick. If I live with other trolls, I’ll get sick all the time.” Rosie squirmed at the thought.

“If you get sick, Jaxon, Darling, or I can heal you.” Garnet rubbed her back soothingly. “You don’t have to live in constant fear you know.” He knew she was scared. It was radiating off her.

Rosie looked away and frowned. “I’ll get in trouble every time I get sick. No thank you.”

“In trouble? Why would you think that?” Garnet looked confused.

“My stepdad use to punish me for being a whiny little shit. I ran away when the adults started to get sick. I can’t go through that again. He was so mean.” Rosie frowned and sniffled. She rubbed her face of tears as the memories came back. She pushed Garnet’s hand away when he tried to comfort her some more. She didn’t trust him. She had endured all forms of abuse as a child and didn’t think anyone else was different. Her mother had been unkind to her too.

“You were abused.” Garnet saw it now. He wrapped his arms around her and ignored the pushes and shoves. He ran his hand through her maroon hair and told her that everything was going to be alright, and that not everyone was as mean as she thought they were.

Rosie gave him half hearted punches and whaps. She thought this was a trick. She slowly calmed down as an overwhelming sense of safety filled her. She leaned into Garnet and sniffled. She was tired from the hyperventilating and the asthma attack. She sighed and closed her eyes. “I can’t trust anyone.”

Branch glanced into the medical room. He had heard the whole thing but had stayed out of the way. He didn’t trust Rosie. He heard that she couldn’t trust anyone. He understood that feeling all too well. He came in with a cup of tea. “Is she feeling better?” He had honey in the tea. Everyone was getting sick, and he assumed that she had also caught the cold.

“I think so. I want her in this bunker until we are sure she didn’t catch the cold. She’s got a very severe case of asthma. It’s much worse than Jaxon and I thought. I’m going to see if we can’t make her medicine that she can take daily to prevent these attacks. She got very pale and purple during this attack. She shouldn’t suffer like that.” Garnet held Rosie as she began to doze off. He had a feeling that she was going to be difficult, but his hope was with time and medicine she would feel much better soon.


	23. A Fair Trade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An exchange is made between Jaxon and Rosie.

Everything began to tamper off for the next month. Garnet and Jaxon had formulated a potion that Rosie would take twice a day to help with her asthma and allergies. So far it was doing the trick for the young survivalist. She was feeling much better but was still very withdrawn. She did get the cold but was quickly healed up. She went back to living in her bunker. She insisted that she would be fine on her own and that she had a lot of work to do. As the end of the month came, Rosie came up with a bundle of clothing in her arms. She walked towards Branch’s bunker and gave his door a knock.

Sky walked over to the door and smiled at her. “Come on in Rosie.” He let her in and smiled at her. “Are those for Jaxon?”

Rosie nodded slowly and walked past him. She wasn’t sure if he was Branch or Sky, but either way, she was extremely wary of him. She looked around for Jaxon and smiled when she saw him in the medical room. She sat them down on a chair. “Here is your payment.” She had made five pairs of pants for him in varying shades of blue and green. She knew her glasses were coming soon.

Sky gave her space but followed. He watched her quietly from the door. She wasn’t as vicious as he originally thought. He noticed she was giving Jaxon pants, so he backed away and left them alone.

Jaxon walked over to her and took her glasses off. He threw them into the garbage. “I’ve just finished your glasses. I hope they work out better for you.” He put them on her face. They weren’t right. He took them off and adjusted the framed a bit, and then put them back on her face. “How is that?”

Rosie looked up at Jaxon and blushed when she saw that he was a handsome fella. She nodded slowly. “Much better…” She glanced around and bit her bottom lip. “Everything looks so clear.” She went over to the bookshelf and pulled out a book. She began reading the words on the front page. She looked up at Jaxon and smiled. “Thank you so much.” She was extremely grateful.

Jaxon pulled out a personal mirror. “They look good on you. I made the frames from light blue plastic. It works beautifully with your eyes.” He loved that she was smiling. It was something he was hoping he would one day see from her.

Rosie put the book back on the shelf and walked over to him. She looked at herself in the mirror. She sighed, seeing a scar over her right eye. She rubbed in lightly. She hated looking in the mirror because of it. She gave him a hug and looked up at him. She was considerably shorter than him. She was shorter than normal and he was a tall trolling. He was almost as tall as Biggie but had a thinner build. “Thank you again. I’ll see you later.” She headed for the front door. She looked around at everything as she headed for the front door.

Jaxon watched her go, and then closed the door and tried on his new pants. He was pleasantly surprised to find that they fit him comfortably. He tucked the other four into his hair and headed for his bedroom to put them away. He had a huge smile on his face. It didn’t seem like much, but the exchange had really lifted their spirits. He was hoping that from this day on, Rosie would relax and come to trust them all. She really had nothing to fear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one is so short. Didn’t see a need to make this one very long. :)


	24. A Year Of Survival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy celebrates the first year that they were all on their own.

About two months later, Poppy had everyone gather. She didn’t tell them why. She just wanted everyone there, including those who had joined her colony the last year. It had been one year since her father died. Instead of wanting to grieve his death, she wanted to celebrate his life. She had a gift for everyone. Satin was next to her, with a box full of flower watches laced on bracelets. Once everyone was gathered, she cleared her throat and smiled at them. “Thank you everyone, for gathering here today. I wanted to thank you all for joining us. It has been one year since the remaining adults died in my colony. Instead of grieving the death of my father, I wanted to celebrate our lives and the life he lived. Thanks to everyone who worked hard, over a hundred of us have survived an entire year on our own. You should be proud of yourselves. This wasn’t an easy achievement. I have a present for the each of you. Satin and I will be handing them out.” She stepped up to Branch first, since he was the colony advisor and grabbed a watch bracelet out of the box Satin had. She put it onto Branch’s wrist and smiled at him. “I want to especially thank Branch for his hard work. We couldn’t have done it without him.”

Satin had a smile on her face as she carried the box around for Poppy. Her colors had recently restored. She missed her twin, but Poppy had made the grieving process easier.

Poppy had restored her colors as well. She put a watch on each trolling. No one went without a bracelet. From the oldest, Garnet, to the youngest, Smidge, everyone got a bracelet. Once everyone had one, she smiled at them. “I have them set to go off during the day, once an hour. Everyone is to hug whomever is around them when it goes off. Don’t worry, it won’t go off during the night.” She squealed in delight when her hug time bracelet went off. She hugged Satin and Rosie to her. She loved this idea already.

Rosie’s eyes went wide when Poppy pulled her and Satin into a hug. She sighed and hugged them back. She had adjusted to the thought of hugs, when they came, but she still spent most of her time in her bunker, where she felt safest.

Satin hugged the two of them and smiled. She was a lot more relaxed. She loved Poppy’s idea. She hoped this would further help them cope with losing their parents, and having to learn to live on their own.

Branch groaned internally as he was hugged by Biggie, Jaxon, and Jade. He glared at Poppy. He didn’t like hugs, or at least he pretended he hated them. He blushed when Biggie stole a kiss from him. He murmured that he didn’t like kissing in public. He was the only trolling that was still gray. He flushed when his colors restored. He buried his face into Biggie. He was embarrassed that he got caught enjoying hugs.

Sky was next to Smidge and Sapphire. He picked up Smidge and turned to Sapphire. He pulled her into a hug and smiled when she returned the hug.

Stream, Creek, and Breeze hugged each other. They had smiled on their faces.

Garnet knelt and hugged Basil, Pearl, and River. He was so glad that Poppy did this. They all needed this love.

Poppy looked around as and smiled as she watched her colony hug each other. She decided this was her best idea yet. “From this day on, I decree that this day will be known as Hug Day. Every year, we will gather at this time and share hugs. Thank you, all of you for your hard work. You all make me so proud.” She had a good feeling that their futures looked bright and full of love and peace. She knew they were all going to make it now. They had made it so far. She couldn’t wait to see what their futures held.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's the end of part 1 of the series. I have a part 2 planned. I hope you all enjoyed!


End file.
